Was all the hubbub about the District's intranet gaming plan a lot of hot air? That's the impression one might get after reading this report in the Washington Times, in which representatives from the D.C. Lottery say that most people they spoke with during a series of town halls on the matter were "supportive." more ›

Three D.C. Council members have declared their intent to re-examine the $38 million D.C. Lottery contract to launch online poker in the District. Their announcement comes after the Washington Times found that a July 2010 request by two former D.C. Cabinet officials to Inspector General Charles J. Willoughby to investigate the contract was met with inaction. more ›

In today's edition of the D.C. Register, the District government outlines guidelines for "Smokin' Hot Dice," a new scratch-off ticket game being introduced by the D.C. Lottery. It's a pretty simple game that is offered in other states. In short, the scratch-off costs $2, every ticket "wins" something ($1 is the minimum), and the big reward is $1,000. The chances of a player pulling in that grand prize? 0.00000 percent, of course! more ›

Does watching a woman in open-toed shoes step in dog excrement -- okay, okay, a mixture of pudding, graham crackers and Cheerios that really looks like dog excrement -- and then gagging make you want to buy a D.C. lottery ticket? more ›

Several tipsters emailed us this morning to let us know that there was a film crew, "replete with police cordons and director's chairs," putting images to celluloid this morning on R Street NW between New Hampshire Avenue and 18th Street NW in Dupont Circle. So who was it? Were there any big stars in the area? Don't get too excited: D.C. Office of Motion Picture and Television Development spokesperson Leslie R. Green informs DCist that the filming was just for a D.C. Lottery commercial -- and nothing incredibly exciting, like Alexander Ovechkin shooting pucks off the roof of a local Capital One Bank.
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I've long wondered why anyone would buy tickets for D.C.'s Mega Millions lottery. The odds of winning are virtually identical to the multi-state Powerball, but the jackpots are almost always much smaller. That's changed lately: Friday's Mega Millions drawing is now set to feature a jackpot of $224 million, which is the largest in the history of the D.C. Lottery. If you take it all in cash, the estimated jackpot would still be $138.1 million. Powerball, meanwhile, is down to only $30 million this week, after a Missouri man recently won $258 million. more ›

Among the items the D.C. Council managed to race through in today's surprisingly zippy legislative session was the long-controversial D.C. Lottery contract. In a 9 to 1 vote, the Council went ahead and gave final approval to a proposal to turn over the lottery to international gaming corporation Intralot. Two Council members, Chairman Vince Gray and At-large member Kwame Brown, abstained from voting, while Ward 4's Muriel Bowser voted "present," leaving At-large member Phil Mendelson the only "no" vote. more ›

The Office of the Chief Financial Officer today announced that it will put forward a proposal to award the contract to operate the D.C. Lottery to Intralot, an international gaming management company. The contract is for an initial five-year period, and must be approved by the D.C. Council. more ›