# Why are some contests void in certain states or provinces? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [July 5, 2002, 6:32am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-some-contests-void-in-certain-states-or-provinces/117460 "2002-07-05T06:32:10Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 5\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![doktersteve](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/edb3f5/32.png) [@doktersteve](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/doktersteve)\ **Post date:** [July 5, 2002, 6:32am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-some-contests-void-in-certain-states-or-provinces/117460/1 "2002-07-05T06:32:10Z")
I was at safeway in Calgary AB, Canada the other day and bought a can of thier store brand Cola… As i was drinking it, i noticed a contest that they were running wherein anyone who bought a safeway cola product and used a safeway club card was entered to win cash prizes, a vehicle, etc… I also noticed what i usually see in the fine print of national (canadian) contests, that residents of Quebec were unable to enter, but this being a Canadian/American chain, there were also a few US states, Rhode Island being one of them, i cannot recall the rest, there may have been about four of them. Why is this? What prevents people who simply reside in a certain political region of north america to be disqualified from almost all nation wide contests run by mcdonalds, safeway, etc? Thanks for the info, any ideas or definitive answers are appreciated. ---
**Author:** ![Satyagrahi](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/f475e1/32.png) [@Satyagrahi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Satyagrahi)\ **Post date:** [July 5, 2002, 7:03am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-some-contests-void-in-certain-states-or-provinces/117460/2 "2002-07-05T07:03:45Z")
States within the U.S. are more than merely “certain political region[s].” Each U.S. state is a sovereign nation that has associated with others to form a federal government but retains many prerogatives for itself. For instance, each state legislature makes the laws that regulate contests and lotteries within its borders. Rhode Island and the others have apparently decided that this particular contest does not meet their requirements. The federal government has almost nothing to do with it. I don’t know about Quebec but I assume it’s something similar. ---
**Author:** ![dtilque](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/d6d6ee/32.png) [@dtilque](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dtilque)\ **Post date:** [July 5, 2002, 7:45am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-some-contests-void-in-certain-states-or-provinces/117460/3 "2002-07-05T07:45:11Z")
Recent thread, which in turn has links to earlier threads on this topic: [http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?&threadid=121945](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?&threadid=121945) ---
**Author:** ![doktersteve](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/edb3f5/32.png) [@doktersteve](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/doktersteve)\ **Post date:** [July 5, 2002, 1:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-some-contests-void-in-certain-states-or-provinces/117460/4 "2002-07-05T13:36:11Z")
thank you. i searched for that thread, for that user name (which i signed up under but could not find the password, etc to), to no avail. Sorry for posting the question twice. ---
**Author:** ![de\_trop](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/b5ac83/32.png) [@de\_trop](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/de_trop)\ **Post date:** [July 5, 2002, 6:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-some-contests-void-in-certain-states-or-provinces/117460/5 "2002-07-05T18:42:14Z")
The key is always that lotteries and sweepstakes are basically misleading. People view them with false hopes and poor understanding of the actual odds. Some states and provinces worry about their people being taken in and demand a little honesty, like guaranteed prize delivery, lists of winners available to audit, etc. Other states and provinces don’t have as many consumerists in office.