Senate Unanimously Bans Lawmakers and Staff From Prediction Markets

The Senate passed a resolution sponsored by Sen. Bernie Moreno of Ohio that instantly banned senators and staff from trading on prediction markets. The measure cleared the chamber via unanimous consent at the end of April, meaning no senator objected.

Business Insider reported the ban reflects growing momentum around restricting lawmakers from such platforms even as similar efforts on stocks have repeatedly stalled. Republican Rep. Nancy Mace of South Carolina responded by writing on X: "Now do the stock market.

The question highlights the contrast between the swift action on prediction markets and the persistent failure to restrict stock trading by members of Congress. Efforts to ban members of Congress from trading stocks have stalled once again. Prediction markets only became a major phenomenon in 2024.

That recency, combined with platform policies, has limited their use among lawmakers. Kalshi automatically bans members of Congress from making accounts on their platform. Only 10 members of Congress reported significant cryptocurrency holdings last year, according to the Campaign Legal Center.

By comparison, 48 percent of members of Congress reported owning individual stocks, while just 6 percent of lawmakers reported having no investment in the stock market whatsoever. The data illustrate why a stock trading ban faces higher hurdles. People put their wealth into stocks as long-term investments, often held in retirement accounts.

House Republicans' most recent stock trading proposal allows lawmakers to hold onto their existing stocks in order not to dissuade potential candidates from running for office. Event contracts on prediction markets, by contrast, are typically short-term bets lasting days or hours rather than vehicles for parking wealth over years. The insider trading risks are clearer in prediction markets.