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<title>Daily Cartoon: Friday, January 10, 2024 | Cowboy State Daily</title>

Daily Cartoon: Friday, January 10, 2024

Headshot of Cowboy State Daily's managing editor, Greg Johnson.

Greg Johnson

Crime & Courts

Courts

A 34-year-old Upton man denies allegations he pulled a gun on a group of people at a Gillette hotel and threatened to “put a bullet in everybody’s head.”

That’s what Gillette Police Department investigators allege a reportedly intoxicated Dakota Adams did during a Saturday confrontation with his girlfriend while their children were present at the National 9 Inn on the east side of the city.

Police were contacted by a bystander at the hotel who reported Adams, who “appeared to be intoxicated and extremely aggravated” and arguing with a woman, while another man and her older children were behind her, according to an affidavit of probable cause written by GPD Officer Kimberly Hockman.

“Dakota had a revolver in his hand and threatened to ‘put a bullet in everybody’s head,’” the affidavit says.

The witness “explained it appeared to be a family dispute between Dakota and a female,” Hockman wrote, adding that Adams and the woman were in a five-year relationship, but that she wanted out.

In fact, she was at the hotel with another man, identified in the affidavit as her new boyfriend.

By the time police arrived at the National 9, Adams had “placed the revolver in his waistband and left the area in a gray Ford Edge with no rear plate … (and) with two children in the back seat,” the affidavit says.

[{"type":"text","marks":[{"type":"bold"}],"text":"What She Said"}]

Because Adams may have been armed and the children in the back of the car — which belonged to his father, and who was in the car with Adams — police were prepared to conduct a “high-risk stop,” Hockman wrote.

They wouldn’t need to, as Adams pulled into a gas station, where police caught up to him, according to the affidavit.

Hockman then arrived with the girlfriend, who “explained she had come to Gillette to cash her paycheck,” and that her “vehicle was parked outside of the National 9 because her new boyfriend resided there,” she wrote.

The woman had been getting repeated phone calls and text messages from Adams, then he spotted her car at the hotel, the affidavit says.

“When (the woman) came outside to roll up her windows, Dakota was in the passenger seat of (his father’s) vehicle watching her,” the document continues. “Dakota got out and started walking towards (her) and her two older children.”

Believing Adams was trying to get to the two older children to take them with him, the girlfriend told police that he “repeatedly said, ‘Get the f*** out of my way’ and tried pushing past (the woman),” according to the affidavit.

She said she told Adams to leave because of how he was behaving and she didn’t want him scaring their kids.

Adams eventually retreated back to his father’s car, then emerged with a gun.

[{"type":"text","marks":[{"type":"bold"}],"text":"Not The First Time"}]

The woman told police that she heard his father say, “Cody, don’t,” and explained that they all sometimes would call Adams “Cody.”

That’s when she “looked back and saw Dakota pointing the gun directly at her,” the affidavit says. “Dakota said something to the effect of, ‘Why don’t I just cut everybody in this mother f***er down’ while waving the gun around.”

Adams allegedly backed off when he realized that others were watching the confrontation and that at least one bystander had called police.

The woman also said that Adams “was a chronic alcoholic and this was not the first time Dakota had become belligerent and aggressive towards her,” Hockman wrote, “even stating this was not the first time he threatened her with a gun.”

[{"type":"text","marks":[{"type":"bold"}],"text":"What He Said"}]

For his part, Adams denies threatening anyone and initially claimed he didn’t pull a gun. He later admitted he did get a gun from the car and had it in his hand, but denied pointing it at anyone, the affidavit says.

“Dakota advised he was in town from Upton with his father and two children to do some grocery shopping and to run a few errands,” the affidavit says. “One of those errands was shopping at Gun Traders, where he stated he purchased a ‘defective’ Taurus handgun revolver.”

[{"type":"text","text":"He also said the gun wasn’t loaded."}]

Adams knew his girlfriend was at the hotel because she was having trouble cashing a check and was there.

The woman “came outside yelling at him, saying she wanted to end their relationship,” according to the affidavit. “While (she) was yelling at Dakota, she ‘nudged’ him away; however, Dakota never expressed that he felt threatened.”

The Upton man also told police that “he realized what he did was ‘dumb’ and put the gun back,” the affidavit continues.

The man who initially called 911 told police that Adams allegedly confronted him about calling police and that he “believed he may be shot by Dakota at this time,” Hockman wrote.

That’s when Adams then opened the cylinder on his revolver and said there were no bullets in it, got into his car and left the hotel.

Adams was arrested Saturday and had his first appearance in Campbell County Circuit Court on Monday.

A preliminary hearing to determine if there’s enough evidence to continue with a felony prosecution is set for Monday.

If convicted of aggravated assault, Adams could face a maximum sentence of up to 10 years in prison, a fine of up to $10,000, or both.

National 9 Inn Gillette 8 4 26

<title>Upton Man Denies Pulling Gun, Threating To ‘Put A Bullet In Everybody’s Head’ | Cowboy State Daily</title>

A 34-year-old Upton man denies he pulled a gun on a group of people at a Gillette hotel Saturday and threatened to “put a bullet in everybody’s head.” Police say the threat was made during a confrontation with his girlfriend and her new boyfriend.

Upton Man Denies Pulling Gun, Threating To ‘Put A Bullet In Everybody’s Head’

Seven months after allegedly kidnapping her 11-month-old son, fleeing the state, then 

 during a brief standoff with law enforcement, a trial has been set for Madeline Daly.

It will be another six months before a Grant County, New Mexico, jury trial is scheduled to begin on Jan. 11, 2027, which was set during a July 21 pretrial hearing.

While the wheels of justice take time, there’s no amount of time that can make Jake Stoner feel much better since the death of his son, reportedly at the hands of his mother.

“There’s a special kind of evil at work here,” he told Cowboy State Daily on Tuesday as Daly, 35, sits in a southwest New Mexico jail cell facing charges of 

 and intentional abuse of a child resulting in death.

[{"type":"text","text":"Stoner said he’s still “pretty much” shellshocked."}]

He declined to discuss the legal and court process much ahead of the trial, but Stoner did say he would have preferred if she were facing a federal prosecution instead of state.

With a federal court, “she would face the death penalty,” Stoner said.

In New Mexico, there is no death penalty and life in prison also can mean a convicted felon could be up for parole after 30 years.

If convicted, Daly could face 30 years to life for first-degree murder and life for intentional abuse, according to New Mexico statutes.

“This is the most God-awful thing I’ve ever experienced,” Stoner said.

[{"type":"text","marks":[{"type":"bold"}],"text":"‘She Would Do It Again’"}]

Already wanted on a Wyoming warrant for kidnapping her infant son Basil, Daly was located near Silver City, New Mexico, just before Christmas last year.

As Grant County Sheriff’s Office deputies moved in around an RV she was staying at, Daly, who lived at an RV park in Ten Sleep before leaving the state, realized they were closing in on her, according to an affidavit of probable cause filed in her case.

She allegedly shot her son, then tried to turn the gun on herself, but by then officers were able to subdue her, according to the affidavit written by Detective Lt. Jason Jordan.

She also reportedly told investigators afterward that she didn’t know why she shot and killed the boy, but that in her mind, she couldn’t let Stoner or his family have him.

“Even if the rest of life is worthless, she would do it again just so to make sure that the (family) didn’t touch him,” the affidavit says.

Daly told investigators that after officers stormed into the RV when she shot the boy, she “wasn’t fast enough killing herself after is all she can say about that,” the affidavit says.

Daly was wanted on a warrant out of Washakie County, Wyoming, after the boy’s father reported the infant missing Nov. 19.

Stoner, from Kilgore, Nebraska, shared custody of the boy with Daly and said she resisted him visiting their son. He last saw Basil on Sept. 28.

[{"type":"text","marks":[{"type":"textStyle"},{"type":"bold"}],"text":"Lands In New Mexico"}]

Daly had disappeared until she applied for a job near Silver City, New Mexico, the affidavit says.

The Wyoming warrant for her arrest popped up during a background check, the affidavit says.

For her part, Daly told agents after her arrest that she was keeping Basil “safe,” and that she knew she was breaking the law, but felt it was worth it for the sake of her child.

She said that’s why she ran into a nearby RV with Basil when she realized the law was closing in on her, the affidavit says.

She also made unsubstantiated claims that Basil “would have been in danger and molested if she would have stepped out of that trailer” and that his father “never wanted anything to do with Basil, financially, physically, emotionally ever.”

When questioned about why she kidnapped her own son, Daly replied that “she was not going to allow her (then) 8-month-old baby go back and forth from Nebraska to Wyoming twice a month,” the affidavit says.

Daly said she wound up in New Mexico because she had worked in that area 10 years ago. She began working for some people there who “ended up ratting her out because they knew she was running from something,” Jordan wrote.

Daly apparently had been trying to blend into an unincorporated area near Silver City, Jordan writes in his affidavit.

She was living in a rented bunkhouse, and an officer who had a contact living near the bunkhouse was alerted and began “keeping an eye out for her return home,” Jordan wrote.

Coincidentally, another deputy saw Daly and her son earlier that day at a local restaurant, but at the time didn’t know she was wanted by the law.

“Madeline was last seen this morning by Cpl. Deputy (William) Mize at the Three Questions Café in Mimbres, but he was not aware of the kidnapping at the time,” the affidavit says.

The document goes on to recount that the deputy observed that “she was a bit evasive as she sat down with her son to have breakfast this morning.”

After getting the call from Washakie County, the Grant County Sheriff’s Office developed a plan to retrieve Basil, the affidavit says.

That included sending out five deputies to the bunkhouse. They had been tipped off that Daly had returned there.

“On arrival, Cpl. Deputy Mize saw a female subject running with a small child towards a motorized RV,” the affidavit says. “When deputies arrive to the motorized RV, they were confronted by a female subject later identified as (the owner of the RV).”

Daly later told investigators why she ran with Basil into the RV.

“I saw the sheriffs and I knew my time was up,” she said, according to the affidavit.

“When asked what went through her mind when she saw law enforcement walking up, she replied, ‘Jake can’t get Basil,’” the affidavit said.

Daly reportedly told investigators she assumed they had a felony warrant for kidnapping because she didn’t follow a judge’s custody order.

“So she said, ‘F*** it, it’s worth a shot,’” the affidavit says, adding that she considered her actions “worth it” if it meant keeping Basil away from his father and his family.

Deputies wanted to go into the RV and get the boy, but the owner “would not give deputies permission to enter her residence without a search warrant,” the affidavit says.

While authorities were telling Daly that she was surrounded and calling her out of the house, other agents were preparing to get a search warrant “just in case Madeline did not comply and come outside,” the affidavit says.

It was then at least one gunshot was heard from inside the RV.

One deputy then reported that the 11-month-old had been “shot in the chest by his mother, Madeline Daly,” the affidavit says, adding that she was in custody.

It’s not clear from the affidavit how many times the infant was shot.

The document references a gunshot to the chest, but then also reports that “medical staff worked on the child, but they were unable to save his life due to the gunshot wound to the face.”

It’s not clear from Daly’s public-facing court file if a mental evaluation has been asked for or ordered leading up to the trail. There are four documents that have been sealed from public view.

She remains in the Grant County Detention Center without bond.

In the meantime, she also faces a potential felony charge in Wyoming of interference with custody, which could get her up to five years in prison, a fine of up to $10,000, or both.

Madeline Daly and Basil 12 26 25

<title>Trial Set For Wyoming Woman Accused Of Kidnapping, Killing Infant During Standoff | Cowboy State Daily</title>

Seven months after allegedly kidnapping her 11-month-old son, fleeing the state, then killing the infant during a standoff with law enforcement, a trial has been set for Madeline Daly. “There’s a special kind of evil at work here,” said the baby’s father.

Trial Set For Wyoming Woman Accused Of Kidnapping, Killing Infant During Standoff

Headshot of Cowboy State Daily's business and tourism reporter, Renée Jean

Renée Jean

Business & Tourism

Jackson Hole isn’t the first place most people think of for a wrestling match, but that’s what is about to quietly unfold in Teton County over the next few weeks. 

Two events, one week apart, will place opposing visions of money within the same valley.

While the two opponents won't share the same stage, they will feature opposing visions of money within the same valley. And each will host different sets of financial titans — neither of which are likely to pull any punches.

First up is the Wyoming Blockchain Symposium, Aug. 17-20, an invitation-only, three-day gathering in Teton Village that will draw 500 billionaire founders, institutional investors and top-tier policymakers for what amounts to a digital-asset Davos. 

The guest list includes top-level regulators such asSEC Chair Paul Atkins and billionaire CEOs such as Ripple CEO Brad Garlinghouse, Galaxy’s Mike Novogratz and BitGo’s Mike Belshe. Venture capital titans such as Morgan Stanley head of Emerging Markets Amy Oldenburg, Nasdaq senior executive Kevin Kennedy, and Skybridge Capital Managing Partner Anthony Scaramucci are also attending.

Then, seven days later, after the crypto and fintech crowd clears out, a considerably smaller group of 120 traditional gatekeepers of legacy finance will arrive at Jackson Lake Lodge for the Federal Reserve’s annual economic retreat — led by new Federal Reserve Chairman Kevin Warsh. 

His banner for the equally closed-door event Aug. 27-29, is “Financial Innovation: Implications for Payments and Policy.”

If all this sounds like it’s just coincidence, it’s one that mirrors events of the past 17 years, ever since Satoshi Nakamoto published his Bitcoin white paper amid the 2008 global financial crisis — just two weeks after the government announced a $2 trillion bailout for banks deemed “too big to fail.”

The argument between the two camps boils down to one core question: Who will control the future of money, and what shape should that future take? 

As crypto advocates see it, government should not be trusted with this power. Exhibit A in their book is the continual printing of money, devaluing everyone’s savings. Computer code can be programmed to limit the money supply automatically, without fear or favor.

The Federal Reserve, on the other hand, is angling for more central control. They believe a group of human experts should control the money supply, to print or restrict money in ways that steer the economy, prevent crashes and manage inflation. 

[{"type":"text","marks":[{"type":"textStyle"}],"text":"Wyoming’s Digital Asset Bet"}]

Sen. Chris Rothfuss, D-Laramie, one of the architects of Wyoming’s digital asset framework, is among those in the Cowboy State watching all of this unfold. 

“It’s an interesting little battle,” he said. “Those traditional financial institutions obviously want to win and want to be in control of financial systems, regardless of the financial system type. So it’s going to be a continued battle.”

Rothfuss hopes that despite the federal battles Wyoming has had to fight for its regulatory framework, that some of the financial institutions are finally coming around.

“I’m hopeful that the hard work we’ve invested in will pay off,” he said. “I think we are still better positioned than any of the alternative solutions — really any of the federal solutions, when it gets right down to it. Because the federal regulatory structure is very subject to political will and the politics of Washington, D.C.”

[{"type":"text","marks":[{"type":"textStyle"}],"text":"Keeping More Wyoming Youth?"}]

Former state legislator and Crook County rancher Tyler Lindholm also helped pioneer the state’s digital asset laws. He sees the digital asset sector as a chance at economic diversification that might help retain more of the state's youth.

“The reality is not everybody wants to grow up to be a cowboy or a coal miner,” Lindholm said. "So, what are we going to do to provide that opportunity for those homegrown Wyoming kids who do want to chase self-actualization and become their best selves and work in the trade they want to work in? Wyoming needs to find a way. We have to find a way to be attractive to different types of industries, because if we keep going down the path we’re going down, Wyoming is going to continue to just look like a retirement state.”

Rep. Daniel Singh, R-Cheyenne, has also been active in digital asset legislation. He is optimistic about the future — and proud of how Wyoming has handled the digital asset space.

“We didn’t have to give any special tax breaks or handouts to these industries to make them think Wyoming is attractive,” he said. “All we had to do was lean into our strengths, which was recognizing the rights of the people, that coming in the form of recognizing property rights in the digital age. We were the first state to go forward and do that, and because we were the first ones to create that legal clarity, so many entities are coming into the state of Wyoming now.”

Some of those entities are already stepping up to give back, Singh added. 

“The largest single entity in Wyoming is Kraken, and they are the ones who have pledged to fund the Trump accounts for our next generation,” he said. “That’s creating a whole other opportunity for the next generation of kids who are going to be here, and they did that voluntarily.”

Others in the space are less optimistic, pointing to the “leap-frogging” the Fed’s delay has made possible by banks in financial centers like New York..

“As a result of that, the big financial institutions have stayed mostly in New York,” Custodia Bank’s Caitlin Long told Cowboy State Daily. “Because the powers that be were able to block Wyoming as an upstart … So Kraken is the only big company that has not just registered in Wyoming, but has relocated to Wyoming and has jobs on the ground.

”It’s not going to be what we had at one time hoped it would be. And there’s one simple reason for that. It’s the Federal Reserve.”

[{"type":"text","marks":[{"type":"textStyle"}],"text":"An Annual Wyoming Fixture"}]

The fact that a digital asset conference with so much global heft is happening in Jackson Hole is not an accident, even if its timing with the Federal Reserve’s annual symposium might be coincidental. 

Wyoming has spent the better part of a decade quietly rewriting its laws to court this kind of moment.

Starting in 2018, lawmakers passed a series of first-in-the-nation statutes to define digital assets clearly and to recognize them as a form of personal property. That legal clarity came with special charters for things like digital asset “SPDI” or speedy banks, to securely hold digital assets and cash them out, and DUNAs, which allow Decentralized Autonomous Organizations (DAOs) to enter into contracts, hold assets, hire contributors and pay taxes. 

The latter Wyoming model has since been copied by other states such as Alabama and West Virginia. 

SPDIs, however, were choked out at the federal level by regulators — despite lawmakers engaging in at least 100 meetings with the Kansas City Federal Reserve to hammer out a SPDI law that would be pleasing to the Fed.

The state has also backed its own government-issued stable token, the Frontier token, pitched as a way to modernize public finance, while helping the state bolster its education system and its property tax base. 

The strategy, Rothfuss and other lawmakers have said, was taking a page from another lightly populated state's playbook. Decades ago, South Dakota successfully diversified its economy by embracing a nascent credit card industry, collaring several companies that still have significant operations there today, among them Citibank and Wells Fargo. 

That’s had mixed success, with the Biden Administration’s Federal Reserve blocking Wyoming’s SPDI banks, but Rothfuss does see notable successes, like Kraken’s decision to plant not only its incorporation papers but its headquarters in Wyoming. 

Founded in 2011, the cryptocurrency exchange and fintech platform serves more than 15 million users in 190 countries, facilitating billions in trading volume and posting $2.2 billion in annual revenue.

It’s No. 3 on the inaugural Fortune Crypto 100 list, tracking the most influential infrastructure builders in the digital asset world. 

“A big part of the reason we have SALT is Kraken and their recognition of (Wyoming’s) framework,” Rothfuss said. “And then we have other entities coming to Wyoming, utilizing our DUNA Act and utilizing other resources like the speedy that we have. We’re trying to get traction with our Frontier Stable tokens, so I think we’ve got all the right tools in place.”

[{"type":"text","marks":[{"type":"textStyle"}],"text":"In Global Company"}]

That backstory explains how and why the Wyoming Blockchain Symposium, whose sister SALT Conference is held in places like Abu Dhabi, Hong Kong, Singapore, Tokyo, New York, and London, has kept the Cowboy State on its short list for three years running. 

“Wyoming, in particular, has shown leadership within that (digital) asset class,” SALT CEO John Darsie told Cowboy State Daily. “So this event is built around being an annual fixture in Wyoming.”

It does bring a large economic impact to Teton County and by extension Wyoming. 

Darsie will secure as large a hotel room block as possible in Teton Village, which essentially means the Four Seasons Teton Mountain Lodge, Faraway Jackson, Gravity House, and Hotel Terra.

“All told, the event is meant to be a 500-person event and is supposed to be somewhat exclusive in nature — by application or invitation only,” he said.

SALT will spend thousands on catering for those 500 out-of-state guests as well as different types of events meant to be a crash course in the Wyoming experience.

“Each year we’ve done a reception at Snake River Ranch at the gray Barn facility in Teton Village,” Darsie said. “We’re doing a big reception at the Mangy Moose in Teton Village this yea, and, then, for the third straight year, we’re doing a concert at the Million Dollar Cowboy Bar in downtown Jackson.” 

The event has sometimes been closed to media, but not this year.

“In year one, we did take more of a Chatham House rule approach,” Darsie said. “But we’ve decided that we want to open it up. There’s nothing that’s going on that we don’t want to share with the world. So we’ve opened it up to media in subsequent years.”

[{"type":"text","marks":[{"type":"textStyle"}],"text":"Wyoming Positioned Well"}]

Darsie is a believer that Wyoming stands to gain, long-term, from the digital asset industry, which he sees as a natural when dovetailing with Artificial Intelligence.

“Wyoming’s leadership in sort of financial innovation is going to dovetail into its leadership in energy and AI leadership,” he said. “Wyoming is a very resource-rich state, a lot of which is untapped. Energy, if it’s consumed closer to where it’s produced, is much more efficient.”

Historically, Wyoming has exported 12 to 15 times the amount of energy it uses, according to various media estimates. 

“I know data center is a dirty word,” Darsie said. “But if you can have data centers built in a place like Wyoming …” it flips the script on both jobs and tax revenues.

“They are positive for the locations in which they operate,” he said. “They are job creators, as long as they’re not putting an onerous strain on an energy grid or a water source or poisoning a water source. And I think as these data centers go on, they will get better at making sure those two things aren’t the case. Then it’s up to local and state leaders to make sure the data centers are built in the right place and operate the right way.”

The vision of Wyoming ripping a page from South Dakota’s playbook is “absolutely” possible, Darsie added.

“This is a growth industry,” he said. “And Wyoming has very effectively staked out its place as the leader in this asset class and in this industry that I think, long-term, will cause it to have more of a moat around it in terms of regulatory innovation.”

Darsie added that he “yearns” for the West every time he’s in Wyoming — if he could just one day convince his wife to relocate. 

“I’m really excited for the future in Wyoming,” he said. “And I’m excited to have our long-term home there for this event.”

Kevin warsh tetons 8 5 26

<title>New Fed Chief Visits As Two Elite Summits Puts Wyoming At Center Of Money Fight | Cowboy State Daily</title>

In the span of a week, Teton County will host a 500-person, invite-only, digital-asset “Davos.” That will be followed by the Federal Reserve’s elite annual retreat. Each event is another round in a high-stakes wrestling match over the future of money.

New Fed Chief Visits As Two Elite Summits Puts Wyoming At Center Of Money Fight

Headshot of Cowboy State Daily's general assignment reporter, Clair McFarland.

Clair McFarland

Politics

People have wagered at least $189,000 on Wyoming’s governor’s race and at least $21,000 on its U.S. House race on political market sites such as Polymarket and Kalshi.

Both sites favor Steve Friess to win the Republican nomination to U.S. House, narrowly, over Secretary of State Chuck Gray, and Eric Barlow to win the GOP nomination for governor.

But they’re not a crystal ball, Dustin Olson, owner of American Pulse Research and Polling, told Cowboy State Daily in a Monday phone interview.

Generally the more money in a race, the more reliable it is, he said. Wyoming’s House race hasn’t garnered big money: about $11,000 on PolyMarket and Kalshi each.

The big drivers of these markets are pollsters, people conducting their own surveys, people with special insight and news headlines, Olson added. Also they don’t call the wagers bets: they call them contracts, “and that’s how they get around all the (sports betting) rules.

“It’s not a good barometer of what’s necessarily real in a race … because it’s based on who’s buying contracts.” 

But, Olson added as a caveat, the markets have at least the credibility factor that people were willing to put money on their predictions.

If anyone has some assurance that Gray will win the House race, now might be a good time to buy a “contract” in his favor, noted Olson.

As of 4:40 p.m. Monday, Kalshi has Gray at 42% odds behind Friess at 54%, and all other GOP House candidates trailing with 3% or less. Reid Rasner and Kevin Christensen are next, favored at 3% and 2%.

The other candidates in the Aug. 18 Republican primary election are Senate President Bo Biteman, former Superintendent of Public Instruction Jillian Balow, former legislator Keith Goodenough, veteran David Giralt, and Richard Dodson.

Polymarket has Friess at 51% followed by Gray at 45%, Giralt at 5%, and the others trailing at 4% or less.

Gray’s Polymarket run was a near-steady climb through July, until Aug. 1, when he dropped from 66% to 46%.

That was two days after Friess unveiled 19 endorsements from former Wyoming legislators, industry leaders and former Gov. Jim Geringer.

Kalshi showed a similar dropoff Aug. 1 for Gray, but a flatter, though sizable, lead for him all summer.

That race, in those markets, doesn’t show the kind of money that suggests pollsters or big-time surveyors are involved, said Olson. It’s likelier a reflection of public messaging, news headlines, and released polls, he added.

[{"type":"text","text":"Olson said the odds get more accurate when the pollsters jump in."}]

[{"type":"text","marks":[{"type":"bold"}],"text":"Gov’s Race"}]

[{"type":"text","text":"As for the governor’s race, “This has a lot more money on it.”"}]

That’s $77,507 on Kalshi and $102,661 on Polymarket as of Monday afternoon.

[{"type":"text","text":"That means this race has more traffic, and likely more input."}]

Polymarket has Barlow at 58%, Degenfelder at 41% and Bien at 3%. Kalshi has Barlow at 62%, Degenfelder at 38% and Bien at 3.8%.

Odds for Degenfelder skyrocketed in January – right after President Donald Trump endorsed her. She kept higher wager favorability than Barlow all summer.

The two didn’t trade places on until about Aug. 1 – and they did so on both Polymarket and Kalshi.

It’s likely a lot of the same people are playing both markets, said Olson.

Barlow started to climb in mid-July before unveiling poll results July 21 showing him with a huge lead.

The markets may be out of touch with on-the-ground sentiment, said Olson, adding that many people leveraging money likely don’t live in Wyoming.

“They might be people who live in New York City,” he said. “They read the headlines, or they’re talking to the insiders, or who knows.”

[{"type":"text","text":"Headlines appear to be a large driver in this race as well, he said."}]

[{"type":"text","marks":[{"type":"bold"}],"text":"Risks"}]

Olson said political wagering is, “I have to say, one of the more fascinating things to happen in politics in the last decade.”

But it carries risks of fixed races, dishonest polls, and even inside political maneuvering to fix the outcome of political events polls.

[{"type":"text","text":"“This is, honestly, not a good thing for democracy,” he said."}]

Gambling sites PolyMarket And Kalshi both favor Steve Friess to win the Republican nomination for U.S. House and Eric Barlow to win the GOP nomination for governor. Bettors, so far, have wagered $210,000 on these two Wyoming races.

Daily Cartoon: Friday, January 10, 2024

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