Texas Lottery commissioner Clark Smith resigned on Friday after controversial lottery wins through third-party services.
AUSTIN, Texas — The Texas Lottery Commission will be in search of new leadership after its commissioner resigned amid ongoing scrutiny over recent wins through third-party couriers.
Texas Lottery commissioner Clark Smith resigned effective Feb. 21, 2025, the commission confirmed. His resignation follows a controversial winning ticket that caught the attention of Texas lawmakers.
That controversial $83.5 million win happened in Austin. The winning Lotto Texas Extra! ticket was bought through a third-party “lottery courier,” a service that allows people to buy state lottery tickets virtually and have a courier buy the ticket for them in person.
The particular lottery courier used was an app called Jackpocket, a subsidiary of the online sports gambling company DraftKings. Though lottery couriers have been operating in Texas since 2016, the practice has drawn the attention of lawmakers, including Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick, who bashed the use of the service last week.
North Texas State Rep. Matt Shaheen, R-Plano, even filed a bill looking to remove the loophole. The state’s concern is regulation. Texas Lottery Commission officials said they can only regulate brick-and-mortar stores that sell lottery tickets, not online courier services.
The Senate Finance Committee grilled Texas Lotto leaders earlier this month, and a lawsuit emerged alleging a long-running fraud scheme between former Texas Lottery Commissioner Gary Grief and Lottery.com.
Smith has been with the Texas Lottery Commission since November 2023, when he was appointed by Gov. Greg Abbott. Smith is an Austin-based attorney who previously served as general counsel for the Texas Alcoholic Beverage Commission, according to a 2023 press release from the governor’s office. Smith’s resignation comes just shy of four years before his term’s expiration on Feb. 1, 2029.
