A Hsinchu man has been granted deferred prosecution after admitting to placing a small bet on a local election outcome via an overseas online prediction market platform, prosecutors said today.
The Panama-based cryptocurrency prediction platform Polymarket had offered a market titled "2026 Taiwanese Local Elections: Party Winner," allowing users to bet on which party would secure the most mayoral and county commissioner seats in the Nov. 28 elections, the Hsinchu District Prosecutors' Office said.
Screenshot from polymarket.com via CNA
Prosecutors said the man, surnamed Ho (何), logged into an app on Feb. 6 under the account name "Anon" and placed a NT$227 bet on a Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) win.
Prosecutors said such election-related betting contravenes the Public Officials Election and Recall Act (公職人員選舉罷免法) and could undermine electoral fairness by influencing public perception.
Given that Ho had no prior criminal record, admitted wrongdoing and showed remorse, prosecutors granted deferred prosecution.
They also warned that election betting promotes speculation and undermines democratic integrity, urging the public not to engage in such activities.
Under Taiwanese law, betting in public or via online and electronic means is illegal and may incur fines of up to NT$50,000, although gambling for "temporary amusement" is exempt.
Betting on the outcome of an election is punishable by up to six months in prison or a maximum fine of NT$100,000.
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