Poll Finds 60% Americans Oppose Election Betting

A Reuters/Ipsos poll of 4,506 U.S. adults from Sept. 30 to Oct. 5 found 60% of Americans oppose betting on election results via prediction markets such as Kalshi and Polymarket. Opposition ran 69% among Democrats and 61% among Republicans; 13% supported it and 24% were unsure. Three-quarters see such wagering as gambling, and only 7% had bet money on one. Roughly 43% opposed sports betting. CBS News said Sept. 30 it would add real-time Kalshi prices to midterm coverage. Kalshi has similar deals with CNN and CNBC; Skydance finished buying Warner Bros. Discovery, CNN’s parent, on Oct. 6. Kalshi said the poll is biased and that leading “betting on war” questions produced the answers, noting it offers no war markets; it wants research with neutral wording and familiarity measures. Ipsos pollster Alec Tyson said most view the markets as gambling and reject elections and government decisions as subjects for it. Polymarket said the markets supply unbiased information and that more than 90% of visits are to view, not trade. Analyst Dustin Gouker said election markets lack sports’ frequent odds swings and that results occur roughly as often as odds imply, as when Abdul El-Sayed’s Michigan primary tightened late. Traders sued Kalshi in March over its Khamenei market after his killing in strikes.