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Powerball Jackpot Hits Half Billion; Florida Leads Sales

MIAMI (CBSMiami) - Doesn't it make you proud? As a Floridian, Florida Lottery officials say you stand the best chance of anyone in the nation to win Wednesday's record drawing. But don't start counting that money yet.

Nobody has won the jackpot, which was reset Tuesday to half a billion dollars, since October 3rd.

In that time, Floridians have purchased the most Powerball tickets in the nation, with more than $83 million sold as of Tuesday. That number is expected to climb as the drawing approaches.

But before you start thinking that gives you an edge, stop to consider the fact that the odds against any single ticket winning are one in 175 million.That applies to each individual ticket, whether you buy one or a million.

That doesn't stop people from trying, and lottery officials love that. Florida has let the nation in sales and overall winners since it joined the 42-state Powerball game 3 years ago.

The most lottery tickets of all kinds are sold in New York, home to $7 Billion in ticket sales.

The drawing is set for Wednesday night in Tallahassee.

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