Lottery has a rich history in America and around the world. It has brought in funds for some of the nation’s earliest church buildings and helped finance the settlement of the American colonies, despite stern Protestant prohibitions against gambling. Its prizes have sometimes included human beings: George Washington managed a lottery whose prize was a slave, and Denmark Vesey won a lotto ticket that would help him foment a slave rebellion in Virginia.
Currently, 43 states and the District of Columbia (plus the Virgin Islands) have state lotteries. Like other forms of gambling, lottery can be risky and addictive. But it is also a source of public revenue, and politicians are keen to promote the idea that lotteries generate wealth for the common good.
In theory, the lottery provides the perfect combination of private and public benefits: private individuals spend money that they would otherwise be compelled to pay in taxes; and governments receive it for free. In practice, however, the lottery is a complex affair.
Almost all state lotteries start as traditional raffles, with players purchasing tickets for a drawing to take place at some future date, usually weeks or months away. In an attempt to expand and maintain revenues, a number of innovations have taken hold. One is the “instant” game, in which tickets are sold with lower prize amounts and much higher odds of winning—often 1 in 4. Another involves dividing a ticket into fractions, usually tenths, each costing slightly more than its share of the total.