The Seneca Nation has a significant history in the gaming industry, particularly in the state of New York. Their involvement in gaming has been shaped by their unique status as a sovereign Native American nation and their ability to operate gaming facilities on their tribal lands under the Indian Gaming Regulatory Act (IGRA) of 1988.

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Political contributions to gain favor and power and not new or unique to the Senecas. Much of the controversy lies inside Seneca Nation, as not all Senecas are happy about this.

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Seneca Nation politics is that participation is made up of a relatively small group of individuals and families who rotate through positions of leadership because elected officials are limited to one term at a time. Many of the same names appear over and over through the years. Tight alliances and the ability to trade actual cash for votes make elections distasteful to some in the nation, resulting in disillusion and diminishing participation.

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Edna Gordon, 82, a Seneca elder from the Cattaraugus Reservation, has given voice to the complaint: that the tribal council spends millions on lobbying and advertising that, in her view, only benefit a handful of rich people -- the cigarette and gasoline barons. "Greed started to take over our nation a long time ago," she said. "These (councilors) say they represent the people, but they don't."