BSS
  14 Jan 2025, 11:23

Trump Jr. joins US political betting start-up

WASHINGTON, Jan 14, 2025 (BSS/AFP) - Donald Trump Jr., the oldest son of US President-elect Donald Trump, said Monday he was to become an advisor for an online betting firm which called the 2024 election for his father.

Kalshi was one of a number of such companies that allowed people to place wagers on the US presidential election, after it won a court battle to be able to take bets.

"On Election night at Mar-a-Lago, while biased outlets called the race a coin toss, my family and close friends used the prediction market @Kalshi to know we won hours ahead of the fake news media," Trump Jr. said on X.

"I immediately knew I had to contribute to their mission. Today, I am proud to announce that I am joining Kalshi as a strategic advisor."

Trump Jr. said it was now "time to trade" on whether outgoing President Joe Biden would issue preemptive pardons for former White House Covid advisor Anthony Fauci and former Republican lawmaker Liz Cheney, a fierce critic of Trump senior.

Kalshi CEO Tarek Mansour welcomed Trump Jr. to the firm, saying on X: "I can't think of anyone better to help drive this mission."

Punters bet millions of dollars on who would win the 2024 presidential election after a last-minute court ruling in Kalshi's favor opened up gambling on the vote in the United States.

Prediction markets were often at odds with opinion polls, frequently predicting a Trump victory while surveys showed a much tighter race with Democratic candidate and Vice President Kamala Harris.