From the Arkansas Advocate:
Someone in Arkansas got a Christmas surprise, winning a $1.8 billion Powerball jackpot that was the second largest in the multi-state game’s history.
The ticket was the second time the Powerball jackpot has been won in the state, according to a Thursday news release. The last Powerball jackpot was won in the state in 2010.
“Congratulations to the newest Powerball jackpot winner! This is truly an extraordinary, life-changing prize,” Matt Strawn, Powerball Product Group chair and Iowa Lottery CEO, said in the release.
The largest Powerball jackpot was $2 billion and was awarded in California in 2022.
The winner will have the choice between an annuitized prize of more than $1.8 billion or a lump sum payment of nearly $835 million. If a winner selects the annuity option, they will receive one immediate payment followed by 29 annual payments that increase by 5% each year.
Both prize options are before taxes.
The winner of the 2022 Powerball jackpot in California opted for a lump sum payment of just shy of $1 billion.
The winner of Arkansas’ Powerball jackpot had not claimed the prize as of Friday morning, Arkansas Scholarship Lottery spokesperson Karen Reynolds said. Reynolds said the winner has 180 days to claim the ticket and can stay anonymous for three years.
The ticket was sold at Murphy USA on Rockwood Drive in Cabot, Reynolds said. An employee who answered the phone said the gas station did not have any comment on the winning ticket.
The Powerball jackpot resets to $20 million for its next jackpot on Saturday night.
