Which US States Likely to Legalize Online Poker in 2018?

There was an Olympics sized gap between Delaware, Nevada and New Jersey legalizing online gambling in their states, and Pennsylvania finally following suit and signing an online gambling bill into law last month.
October also saw an online poker player liquidity pool agreed between the three original regulated states, and with Pennsylvania likely to join the compact sometime next year, plenty of extra motivation is now being provided for other US states to consider joining the expanding network.
Currently, Michigan appears to be the most likely candidate for passing regulation in 2018, with State Senator Mike Kowall continuing to do a good job working closely with the local tribes in order to find a compromise that may allow the process to move forward. Meanwhile, State Representative Brandt Iden also introduced HB.4926 earlier this year, with his efforts to gain support for the bill likely to pick up pace once the holiday season is over.
New York, on the other hand, has seen its efforts trail off recently after State Assemblyman J. Gary Pretlow expressed his concern over the poor performances of the state’s newest casinos. Pretlow has since said that he would take a wait and see approach before “jumping into Internet gaming”, making it more important than ever for State Senator John Bonacic to find a new champion for the cause if he is to see any advancement on the issue in 2018.
New Hampshire, too, is a good candidate for online gambling regulation next year. This is because it has recently being enjoying great success from its nascent online lottery industry, and is unlikely to want to sit on the fence as its neighboring states of New Jersey and Pennsylvania reap the rewards generated from their own lucrative online gambling industries.
Finally, Illinois and West Virginia both have online gambling bills in play which will help discussions on the topic get off to a swift start next year, with West Virginia Delegate Shaun Fluharty having already expressed his impatience over further delay after tweeting:
“With PA passing sports betting, online poker and daily fantasy legislation today, WV must act this session or be left in the dust.”