Supporters of expanded gambling in Georgia are betting that lawmakers could get the chance to vote to clear the way for casinos in Georgia as early as next year.

They hope to borrow a strategy that helped break a years-long logjam over whether to allow stores to sell wine, beer and liquor on Sundays by giving local communities the final say.  But MGM, which has pitched a $1 billion casino resort for downtown Atlanta, and other gambling proponents must clear a few additional hurdles as well.

A two-thirds majority in both legislative chambers must first approve a constitutional amendment allowing expanded gambling, and then a majority of votes would have to give it their support on next year’s ballot.

And just like the debate over “Sunday sales,” which was vigorously opposed by then-Gov. Sonny Perdue, backers must also convince Gov. Nathan Deal to sign the “enabling legislation” that forms the guts of how the casinos would operate in Georgia.

In today’s dead-tree and premium version of the AJC, we have an in-depth look with our AJC colleague Scott Trubey at the behind-the-scenes maneuvering already underway for the casino project.

Here’s a snippet – and you can read the whole thing by clicking here:

MGM officials have toured property near Centennial Olympic Park and “the Gulch” in downtown and are also interested in bringing gambling to Savannah, according to documents obtained through the Georgia Open Records Act.

The casino giant has crafted a pitch that gambling can help revive Georgia Lottery-funded programs like the HOPE scholarship that have cut rewards amid increasing demand. Advocates also claim casinos under the proposed legislation could create more than 10,900 jobs statewide.

MGM and its supporters sense that political winds have shifted in recent years, with a slim majority of GOP voters voicing support for casino gambling in 2012 and some traction this year to allow horse racing.

“We like the concept of putting a resort somewhere in the metro Atlanta area,” said Lorenzo Creighton, the president of the MGM National Harbor in Baltimore and a member of the team scouting Georgia. “It all starts with the HOPE scholarship, which would be the primary benefactor. It’s a win-win.”

The debate will land just in time for election-year politicking. Deal’s top aide, Chris Riley, recently made clear the obstacles it faces when he offered this prediction:

“I doubt it will happen before Jan. 10, 2019,” he said – a reference to the date of the next governor’s inauguration.