Boise ÔÇô The Powerball jackpot is now an estimated $500,000,000 for tonight's draw. This is the third largest Powerball jackpot in the game's history and the 5^th largest jackpot in the history of the world. Powerball sales in Idaho have been brisk, increasing by more than 50% over the same period last week.

Players wanting the chance to participate in this evening's draw have until 7:55 p.m. MT tonight to purchase a ticket. Tickets are $2 each. The Idaho Lottery is asking participants interested in playing to purchase their tickets earlier during the day and not to wait until the last minute.

The Idaho Lottery does suggest players sign and print their name on the back of their tickets after purchasing them.

"We are seeing a lot of excitement from our players right now. We strongly recommend that participants in this big jackpot only play what they can afford. It does only take one ticket to win," said Jeff Anderson, Idaho Lottery Director.

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ABOUT THE IDAHO LOTTERY
The Idaho Lottery responsibly provides a variety of entertaining games featuring Powerball, Mega Millions, Scratch Games^TM, and PullTabs with a high degree of integrity to maximize the dividend for Idaho public schools and the permanent building fund. Since their inception in 1989, the Idaho Lottery has sold over $2.7 billion in products, awarded over $1.6 billion in prizes to players, returned more than $160 million in retail commissions, and distributed $649.5 million in Lottery dividends to Idaho public schools and the Permanent Building Fund. To learn more, please visit www.idaholottery.com.