BOSTON (AP) — A group of local anti-casino advocates is backing Boston Mayor Martin J. Walsh as he calls into question the state’s process for licensing a casino in its eastern region.

“No Eastie Casino,” said in a brief filed with the Massachusetts Gaming Commission on Thursday, that its members “fully endorse” the Walsh administration’s objection to a May 1 public hearing in which the commission is expected to weigh whether Boston should be designated a “host community” for casinos proposed in neighboring Revere and Everett.