A lottery is a way of raising funds for a government, charity or private group by selling tickets with numbers on them that are then chosen at random. People who have these numbers on their tickets win prizes. The practice of drawing lots to determine ownership or other rights has been common in many cultures throughout history. Lotteries are a type of gambling, but they can also be used to dish out other things, like admission to kindergarten at a prestigious school or a place in a subsidized housing unit. In the United States, most states and the District of Columbia run their own lotteries. In fact, state governments have granted themselves monopolies on lotteries by forbidding competing commercial lotteries and using their profits solely to fund government programs.

Lotteries are popular with middle-class and upper-middle class citizens, who tend to be the largest segment of their markets, although there is a significant and increasing percentage of lower-income households who participate in them. The lottery is also a highly effective political tool for states to raise money for a variety of projects, including public works and schools.

A number of issues arise from the proliferation of state-sponsored lotteries, however. First, because the primary function of the lottery is to increase revenue, it necessarily promotes gambling. This raises concerns about the potential for negative consequences on the poor and problem gamblers, among others. Also, because the lottery is a business, its decisions are often driven by profit motives that can conflict with the public interest.