Published on: November 5, 2025, at 12:20 PM.
Updated on: November 5, 2025, at 12:24 PM.
- Smoking is still allowed in all nine Atlantic City casinos.
- Some casino employees hope that New Jersey’s incoming governor, Mikie Sherrill, will advocate for an end to the smoking allowance.
U.S. Representative Mikie Sherrill (D-NJ) is preparing to move from Washington to Trenton as the newly elected governor of New Jersey. She secured a decisive victory over Republican candidate Jack Ciattarelli on Election Day.
Now the governor-elect of New Jersey, Sherrill has been a Congressman since January 2019. After relocating from Virginia in 2010, she called New Jersey her home.
In a closely watched gubernatorial election, Sherrill received nearly 1.8 million votes, accounting for over 56% of the total. Ciattarelli garnered only 43% of the ballots cast.
For casino workers in Atlantic City aiming for a smoke-free workplace, Sherrill’s election is seen as a promising development. She has expressed her intent to support changes to New Jersey’s 2006 clean indoor air law, which currently allows exceptions for casinos and parimutuel facilities.
Smoke-Free Future?
Sherrill will take over from Gov. Phil Murphy, a fellow Democrat who has also shown support for a smoke-free policy for Atlantic City casinos. However, Murphy highlighted the complexities of such a move, noting concerns about potential declines in gaming revenue and job losses voiced by casino operators.
The group CEASE (Casino Employees Against Smoking Effects) counters these claims, emphasizing that the health of workers should take precedence over profit margins. Sherrill mentioned in a town hall meeting that “younger demographics are moving away from smoking,” indicating her support for a potential smoking ban within casinos.
CEASE is hopeful that Sherrill, unlike her predecessor, will act decisively to implement a ban on smoking in casinos. They look forward to collaborating with her to eliminate the smoking exemption that has subjected casino employees to harmful air quality for far too long.
Atlantic City is not the only jurisdiction where casino patrons can smoke. In Pennsylvania, for instance, casinos have the option to designate certain areas for tobacco use.
In contrast, smoking is banned in various other regions of the Mid-Atlantic and Northeast, including Maryland, Connecticut, Delaware, Massachusetts, and New York.
Casino Influence
The casino sector wields considerable power in Trenton and is expected to lobby state lawmakers to maintain the current smoking policies. The Casino Association of New Jersey (CANJ), representing the nine casinos in the state Legislature, aims to protect their smoking rights.
Implementing a full smoking ban poses one of the greatest threats to our operations,” remarked CANJ President Mark Giannantonio, who also leads Resorts, in an interview with North Jersey last year.
A study commissioned by CANJ revealed that over 2,500 casino jobs could be at risk if a smoking prohibition is enforced in Atlantic City.
Casino revenue saw a slight decline of 1.1% in 2024. However, 2025 has shown improvements, with gross gaming revenue from physical slots and table games up by 2.5% through September, totaling $2.2 billion for the year so far.