Place your bets! Court decision allows gambling on congressional races

There’s a lot of focus on horse race politics this time of year. A new court decision in favor of a betting company will allow individuals to place bets on which party will win control of Congress.

A federal judge recently struck down a Commodity Futures Trading Commission decision that prohibited the company Kalshi from taking bets on congressional elections. The market is now up and running .

Straight Arrow News asked members of Congress what they think of Americans being allowed to place bets on their races. Some said it shouldn’t be allowed, others said they’re not gamblers.

“We try to have a wall of separation between campaign elections and commerce, and gambling is a form of commerce," Rep. Jamie Raskin , D-Md., said. "You certainly don't want people betting on an election and then trying to fix an election in order to win the election. So I support the laws against gambling on elections.”

Raskin went on to explain a scenario that could lead to corruption.

“You can imagine a situation where you get organized criminals betting on an election and then working to pay off voters,” Raskin said.

“I've never gambled,” Rep. Tim Burchett , R-Tenn., said. “I take that back. I bet on the New York Jets in college and I won $5 and I bought a Mr. Daddy's large pizza.”

Kalshi wanted to set up a political prediction market platform, and House Judiciary Chairman Jim Jordan contends the Commodity Futures Trading Commission went beyond its statutory authority when it prohibited Kalshi from doing so.

“The CFTC’s actions also indicate the agency may be engaging in regulation by enforcement, a regulatory practice that creates uncertainty and undermines due process and fundamental fairness,” Jordan wrote.

The CFTC said allowing Kalshi to move forward with its plan would involve “gaming and activity that is unlawful under State law” and “contrary to the public interest.”

However, Jordan said Congress never authorized the CFTC to prohibit “event contracts” in the way Kalshi wanted to operate.

It’s important to note that this doesn't involve standard bets. Instead it’s a kind of mix between a sports book and the stock market where one can buy an event contract that says a candidate will win or lose.

Predictit.org operates an experimental prediction market platform for the presidential election. Currently a contract for a Harris victory costs 57 cents, while a contract for a Trump victory is at 48 cents, indicating Harris currently is favored to win.

Betting on elections is not authorized anywhere in the United States and some states have bans in place.

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