West Virginia Election Betting: Still Illegal
State officials confirm that wagering on Tuesday's general election results remains a misdemeanor with a $50 fine, despite billions in national online bets.
By Natalie Cooper ·
Residents of West Virginia who placed online bets on the outcome of Tuesday's general election committed a crime. State law classifies wagering money or anything of value on any election, from statewide races to local municipal contests, as a misdemeanor. The maximum penalty is a fine of $50 per occurrence.
Deak Kersey, Deputy Secretary of State for West Virginia, told WMOV Radio that the state's ban on election gambling remains in full force. He stated that if a person is found guilty, they face a misdemeanor charge and the associated fine. Kersey noted that while the law primarily targets the individuals making the wagers, the state has not yet determined what penalties might apply to companies providing the betting platforms.
National reports indicate that betting firms such as Kalshi and Polymarket processed more than $1 billion in wagers on Tuesday's election results. Despite this surge in activity, West Virginia has not updated its penalties to reflect modern inflation or digital platforms. The current $50 cap has been in place since the law was last amended in 1962.
Kersey pointed out that the state has not seen election wagering convictions in more than a century. The last recorded incidents occurred in 1889 in Gilmer County, where four people were charged and convicted. Two groups were involved; one group bet $1 each on a county race, while the other bet $50 each on a presidential elector's race.
In those 1889 cases, the courts fined the group with the $1 bets a total of $51 apiece. The group with the $50 bets received fines of $100. Kersey calculated that a $1 bet in 1889 is equivalent to $36 in 2026 dollars, while a $50 fine then equals $1,800 today. The $100 fine from that era translates to $3,600 in current value.
Kersey confirmed that the statutory maximum fine has not increased in 137 years. He emphasized that the law is straightforward: residents are not allowed to bet on election outcomes, and prosecution will follow if they do. Polls in West Virginia opened at 6:30 a.m. Tuesday and closed at 7:30 p.m.
