While the debates about and bipartisan efforts to hamper Congressional stock trading have never been more ardent, a significant number of politicians are still seeing incredible returns on their investments.

Given how suspicious such moves can be, investors have developed unique strategies to try and mimic Congressional market successes. 

Among the most salient ones are those by Quiver Quantitative, a research platform known for sharing some of the most questionable politician stock trades on X.

Beating the market with automated trades

One of Quiver’s more notable strategies is ‘Congress Buys’, an automated trading bot that has proven quite successful since its inception. 

The simple premise of investing in the 10 most purchased stocks by members of Congress (including their families) has allowed the bot to post a return of 484.39% since its inception in 2020, with a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 37.47%.

In 2025, the returns have been 35.24% year-to-date, vastly outperforming the S&P 500, the index it uses as a benchmark, which is up only 12.72% over the same period.

Members of Congress still outperform the market

The success of trading bots such as Congress Buys underscores just why a general ban on Congressional stock trades is such a hot topic.

Whether by luck, timing, or insider information, legislators, representatives, and other office holders continue to outperform the broader market, so the push to curb this advantage has gained a lot of momentum.

Last month, Texas Republican Representative Chip Roy and Rhode Island Democrat Seth Magaziner introduced the Restore Trust in Congress Act, a new legislation that would require lawmakers to sell all individual stocks within 180 days.

The act has not yet passed the House, but, together with other endeavours of its kind, it underscores the pressing nature of the matter.

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