The prediction market Kalshi imposed sanctions on three American politicians who wagered on the outcomes of their own election campaigns.
The measures hit Minnesota senator Matt Klein, US House candidate Ezekiel Enriquez and Mark Moran, a contender in Virginia’s Senate race. They were barred from using the platform for five years and fined.
Klein must pay $540, Enriquez $784 and Moran $6,229. The latter must also return all profits from his trades after refusing to cooperate with Kalshi’s compliance department.
How the politicians responded
Moran said he had placed a bet deliberately to test the platform’s response to insider trading. He also accused Kalshi of corruption and promised to take appropriate action if elected to the Senate.
Finally, one of the moments I’ve been waiting for.
YES, I did bet ~$100 on myself on Kalshi because I wanted to get caught…
After discovering potential manipulation on polymarket in the NYC mayoral race (NY Post reported on this) I realized how rife with corruption kalshi… https://t.co/9o6wgwTmv8 pic.twitter.com/WJSdHnsfRd
— Mark Moran for U.S. Senate (@itsmarkmoran) April 22, 2026
Klein admitted he had staked about $50 “out of curiosity”. He wanted to understand how prediction markets work.
— Dr. Matt Klein (@DrMattKleinMN) April 22, 2026
Only later did he realise he was violating the platform’s rules. Notably, Klein is a co-author of a Minnesota bill that would ban wagers on real-world outcomes such as elections and policy decisions.
Enriquez did not comment on the incident and did not respond to media requests.
In late February Kalshi blocked former California gubernatorial candidate Kyle Langford, who wagered $200 on his election victory and posted a screenshot on X. He was fined $2,000.
At the same time, YouTube editor Artem Kaptur, who had worked with creator James Donaldson (MrBeast), was also sanctioned.
Moves toward regulating prediction markets
On April 22nd New York governor Kathy Hochul signed an executive order prohibiting state employees from betting on prediction markets. Earlier, Illinois governor J. B. Pritzker issued a similar directive.
“Enrichment through betting on inside information is corruption, pure and simple. Our actions ensure that public servants will work for the people they represent, not for personal gain,” Hochul said.
She also criticised the administration of US president Donald Trump and Republicans in Congress. According to the governor, the politicians allowed an “ethical Wild West” to overrun prediction platforms by failing to introduce standards to guard against insider trading.
States across America are moving to regulate such firms. In October 2025 New York authorities ordered Kalshi to cease operations—the platform was operating without a sports-betting licence.
Kalshi is currently in litigation with Nevada, where a court has temporarily blocked its activities. The regulator deems the platform’s contracts “illegal gambling”.
Coinbase’s chief legal officer, Paul Grewal, suggested the case could reach the US Supreme Court and set a precedent for regulating prediction markets.
The questions at oral argument are an unreliable signal in predicting the leanings of a court. Either way, I stand by my longstanding prediction— the Supreme Court will resolve whether sports Ks on DCMs are swaps subject to the exclusive jurisdiction of the CFTC.
— Paul Grewal (@iampaulgrewal) April 16, 2026
Insider trading on Polymarket
Two accounts on Polymarket were suspected of manipulation after they made $37,000 from correct bets on anomalous temperature readings at a weather station in Paris Charles de Gaulle airport, analysts at Bubblemaps said.
Did someone manipulate the weather on Polymarket? 🇫🇷
This account made 180x on a Paris temperature market, betting just before a “glitch” at a local weather station 🧵 pic.twitter.com/TPPGyvmky3
— Bubblemaps (@bubblemaps) April 22, 2026
On April 6th the station’s temperature suddenly jumped to 21°C before immediately reverting to normal. The market resolved in favour of the winner, who received more than $16,000.
A similar glitch occurred on April 15th: for most of the day the station showed 18°C, then the temperature rose to 22°C and fell back again.
Experts found the anomalies were not corroborated by data from nearby stations. One minute before the April 15th spike a trader began buying “no” bets on 18°C and ultimately earned more than $21,000.
Meteorologist Ruben Hallali told BFMTV that such temperature jumps were unlikely to occur naturally.
“It is likely that someone who understands how the sensors work deliberately raised the temperature by two degrees at the right moment to validate the bet,” he added.
France’s meteorological agency, Météo France, filed a police complaint on suspicion of interference with automated data-processing systems.
In April, the US outlet More Perfect Union published an investigation into prediction markets. The reporters argue that such platforms exploit Americans’ economic anxiety under the guise of “democratising finance”.