Billionaires have plenty to celebrate despite contested US election outcome

Despite lingering uncertainty over the US election, the country’s ultra-rich already have plenty to celebrate.

Tech billionaires in Silicon Valley saw a hotly contested ballot question on the employment status of gig workers pass in their favour, while an Illinois measure to swap the state’s flat income tax with a graduated system went down in defeat after Citadel’s Ken Griffin spent millions to oppose it.

Across the board, the 167 US billionaires also gained $57.4 billion on Wednesday as investors bid up stocks, sending major averages to the biggest rallies in five months. Amazon.com Inc.’s Jeff Bezos led the way with a