After no one won Tuesday’s drawing, the Mega Millions lottery jackpot hit $1.35 billion, its second-highest tally. Sixteen won the second-tier prize of $1.3 million.
The next drawing will be held Friday. If the $1.35 billion is won that night, then the prize, which proffers $707,900,000 if one takes the lump cash option, would be second only to a $1.537 billion jackpot won in South Carolina on Oct. 23, 2018.
“Now at $1.35 billion, the Mega Millions jackpot is moving up and making history as the second-highest Mega Millions jackpot ever. Our member lotteries raise funds for many good causes, ranging from education to conservation programs,” Mega Millions Consortium Lead Director Pat McDonald said in a release.
A win Friday would be the seventh time someone has won a Mega Millions jackpot on the “unlucky” day of Friday the 13th.
The previous six were Michiganders that won in June 2008, May 2011 and June 2014, a New Yorker in March 2009, an Ohioan in November 2015 and a split prize between a Michigander and a Rhode Islander in October 2017.
The last Mega Millions jackpot, $502 million, was won and split by ticket holders in Florida and California last Oct. 14.
In the 25 drawings held since that date, 68 people have won $1 million or more, spread across 24 out of the consortium’s 45 states. Of the 16 that won Tuesday, three people won $3 million due to the use of a Megaplier that tripled their winnings, while the rest won $1 million.
The Mega Millions lottery is also available in the District of Columbia and the U.S. Virgin Islands. Nevada, Utah, Alaska, Hawaii, and Alabama do not offer the Mega Millions lottery.
• Brad Matthews can be reached at bmatthews@washingtontimes.com.
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