Illinois lawmaker probes Polymarket links to election denial

On July 14, Rep. Raja Krishnamoorthi sent a letter to Polymarket CEO Shayne Coplan requesting documents and policy details after reports that paid influencers promoted election-denial claims while advertising the platform’s prediction markets. The congressman gave the company until July 28 to respond.

Krishnamoorthi asked Polymarket to produce records and explain practices in three areas: whether the company knowingly partnered with influencers who publicly promoted election-denial claims; the content and enforcement of policies on paid promotions, affiliate programs and influencer partnerships; and documents dating back to January 2025 related to vetting, monitoring and internal discussions about relationships with election-denial figures.

The letter warned that prediction markets tied to elections could create “dangerous incentives” for creators and platforms to spread misleading information. It linked those concerns to harms observed after the 2020 elections and urged Polymarket to adopt safeguards, including clearer disclosure of sponsored election-related content, restrictions on misleading promotions and steps to prevent market data from being used to promote false claims about election integrity.

Krishnamoorthi did not allege any legal violations in the letter. He requested internal guidance, training materials and enforcement records related to the promotion of election-related markets, along with communications and analyses concerning influencer partnerships and affiliate payments. The deadline for the company’s response is July 28.

The congressman is a co-sponsor of two measures addressing prediction markets: the Public Integrity in Financial Prediction Markets Act, which would bar certain government officials and employees from trading prediction-market contracts when they hold material nonpublic information, and a House resolution that would prohibit members, officers and employees from participating in prediction markets while excluding lawful sports betting. Lawmakers have introduced more than two dozen bills and resolutions this year related to election and sports contracts, insider trading, conflicts of interest and consumer protections.

Polymarket did not respond publicly to the letter. The inquiry adds to congressional scrutiny of how online prediction markets intersect with political speech, paid influencer promotion and the spread of false or unverified claims.