State Sen. Chris Elliott (R-Josephine) explained why he voted against the lottery and gambling bill Tuesday night, arguing the bill is “overly broad.”

The Senate failed to pass a proposed lottery and gambling amendment by a vote of 20 to 15. The House had passed the bill earlier in the day. A constitutional amendment requires 60% approval in both houses, and 21 votes are needed to pass.

A majority of members voted in favour of adopting the conference report passed by the committee, so a vote on the amendments will take place again today.

“The Alabama Senate passed a bill to end illegal gambling and allow for a paper lottery referendum, but the House voted against it, sending the bill to a conference committee,” Elliott wrote on Facebook on Wednesday. “The resulting compromise included significant permissive language that would have significantly expanded electronic casinos across the state and further expanded government. While I have voted in favor of paper lottery referendums on multiple occasions, I could not support the conference committee's expansion bill.”

Elliott said all Alabamians really want is a lottery.

“The public wants a lottery. I mean, that's basically what the public wants,” Elliott said last month. “The public doesn't want anything more. It doesn't matter to the public to focus on the political differences between the House and Senate versions and why this passed and why that didn't pass. The public just wants to be able to vote on the lottery.”

The senator is currently at odds with Gov. Kay Ivey, who told reporters Wednesday that she supports the bill.

“My position hasn't changed,” she said. “It's time for the voters of Alabama to have a say. Lawmakers have been saying it all along.”

“Now is the time for Alabama voters to vote and get this done.”

Yaffe is a contributing writer for Yellow Hammer News and hosts “The Yaffe Program” weekdays from 9-11 a.m. WhistlerYou can follow us on Twitter @Yaffe