The House of Representatives has sustained Gov. John Baldacci's veto of a bill that would have allowed the Penobscot Nation to operate slot machines on Indian Island in Old Town.

It would have taken two-thirds votes in both branches of the Legislature to override the veto, but the House upheld the veto shortly after 5 p.m. on a 94-49 vote.

The 94 votes to override barely fell short of the two-thirds margin that would have been needed to send the veto to the Senate for an override vote there.

In a veto message released this afternoon, Baldacci wrote that he believes the state should not expand gambling unless voters successfully mount a citizen-initiated referendum campaign. The Penobscot Nation slots bill originated in the Legislature, not through a petition drive.

Describing his opposition to expanded gambling as "well-documented and unwavering," Baldacci said gambling expansions "so alter the fabric of the state that all of its citizens, not just the elected members of the legislative and executive branches, deserve an opportunity to be heard."

Voters will decide the fate of a citizen-initiated bill on Nov. 4 that would authorize construction of a casino at an unspecified location in Oxford County. Last year, Maine voters defeated an initiated referendum that would have allowed the Passamaquoddy Tribe to install slot machines at a harness track in Calais.