Arizona and Pennsylvania counties ban election staff from prediction market bets before midterms
Election officials in Maricopa County, Arizona, and Delaware County, Pennsylvania, have barred employees from trading on prediction market contracts ahead of the midterm elections. The officials say the bans guard against insider trading and protect public trust in the electoral process. The restrictions apply to platforms including Crypto.com, ProphetX, and Fanatics. No details on enforcement mechanisms were provided.
The bans harden a third front of election-integrity rules that platforms must now navigate alongside federal detection standards and other county employment policies. Kalshi and Polymarket traders with government access face employer-specific prohibitions that carry no uniform penalty or clear scope. The restriction arms critics who want election contract categories removed entirely.
Platforms gain no clarity on which jurisdictions will layer similar rules, but bear reputational risk if a public employee is caught betting. Each new ban accelerates patchwork compliance without giving operators a single rulebook. A federal employee case settled for $172,000 already proved personal liability reaches past election cycles.