Florida man sued for not paying up after betting on Trump
President Donald Trump in the Oval Office of the White House on December 3, 2020, in Washington, DC. (Photo by BRENDAN SMIALOWSKI/AFP via Getty Images)
ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. - A friendly $100 wager over the 2020 Presidential election has landed in a Florida small claims court.
Before the election, Sean Hynes, a Trump supporter from St. Petersburg, reached out to Jeffrey Costa, an acquaintance who is a Biden supporter from Atlanta. The deal was sealed on Facebook Messenger: If Trump won, Costa would pay $100. If Biden won, Hynes would pay up.
But once the votes were counted, Hynes refused to acknowledge the Democrat’s victory, even after recounts, the Supreme Court’s rejection of court challenges and the Electoral College’s confirmation, the Tampa Bay Times reported.
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Costa, 50, decided to sue. He’s seeking the $100, plus $250 in court costs and $300 in interest on the unpaid bet. He’s representing himself in the action, filed Dec. 28 in Pinellas County small claims court.
"You should have the integrity in your principles to follow through with what you have proposed," Costa told the newspaper.
Costa first messaged Hynes on Nov. 7, the day after the election was called in Biden’s favor, to ask for the money.
"Bro, the elections are determined by the courts, not the networks," Hynes responded. The two continued arguing back and forth.
"It’s not settled by law, Sean," Costa said. "Trump is mathematically eliminated.
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When Costa told Hynes in December that he planned to sue for the money, Hynes unfriended him on Facebook, the newspaper reported.
Hynes didn’t answer the newspaper’s Facebook message.
For Costa, the lawsuit is about more than the money.
If Hynes had been willing to pay the bet, he’d be willing to drop the lawsuit. Hynes didn’t.
"I also felt that if you’re going to live in a post-fact world, there are consequences to that," he said.