A coalition of US lawmakers has known as on the Commodity Futures Buying and selling Fee (CFTC) to ban playing on American elections.
A number of legislators endorsed the letter, together with Senators Elizabeth Warren (D-MA), Richard Blumenthal (D-CT), Chris Van Hollen (D-MD), and Sheldon Whitehouse (D-RI), together with Representatives Eleanor Holmes Norton (D-DC), Jamie Raskin (D-MD), and John Sarbanes (D-MD).
The lawmakers emphasised the detrimental impression of election playing on public belief and the democratic course of and known as for instant motion to finalize and implement a proposed rule aimed toward preserving the integrity of US elections.
Though the letter doesn’t specify any platform or crypto, it comes after elections-related betting hit a document excessive on Polymarket following an try on former President Donald Trump’s life and President Joe Biden’s withdrawal from the 2024 presidential race.
The platform’s complete buying and selling quantity virtually doubled to $1 billion in July following the occasions.
‘Commodification of elections’
The lawmakers criticized the pattern, writing:
“The very last thing voters want are bets waged on the result of that election. Voters want motion, as proposed by the CFTC on this rule, to revive belief. Elections are usually not a for-profit enterprise. With out this rule, voters will marvel if their vote mattered and whether or not the result of the election was influenced by huge cash bets.”
The lawmakers argued that election playing essentially undermines the sanctity of the democratic course of. They warned that such practices might shift voter motivations from real political convictions to monetary incentives, resulting in important moral considerations.
Moreover, they raised considerations that political insiders might probably exploit private info for private achieve, additional eroding public belief within the electoral course of.
The letter acknowledged:
“Permitting billionaires to wager extraordinary bets whereas concurrently contributing to a particular candidate or get together, and political insiders to guess on elections utilizing private info, will additional degrade public belief within the electoral course of.”
The lawmakers urged the CFTC to take motion and forestall the “commodification” of US elections.
Merkley additionally not too long ago wrote an analogous letter urging the CFTC to reject a proposal from a non-public prediction market operator that sought to legalize playing on US election outcomes. The CFTC in the end disapproved the proposal.
