Kalshi bans George Santos for life over State of the Union bets

In Brief Posted: 11:53 AM PDT · August 31, 2026 Image Credits:Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images / Getty Images Kalshi has banned former Republican Rep. George Santos from its platform for life, the first time the prediction market company has taken such an action. Kalshi also penalized and suspended several political candidates accused of betting on their own races, including Ben Midgely, who ran and lost in the Republican primary for Maine’s gubernatorial race; Laurie Buckhout, a Republican congressional nominee; and former California gubernatorial candidate Stephen Cloobeck. The Santos ban follows allegations that he bet on whether he would attend President Trump’s State of the Union address, allegedly making $17,839 on the wager. Kalshi’s compliance department said it “established reasonable cause” to believe that Santos had placed bets connected to his own attendance at the event. Kalshi also fined Santos $71,356 over the activity. “As a person capable of influencing the outcome of the underlying event, Santos was prohibited from trading in this market,” Kalshi wrote, accusing him of making public statements about his attendance to impact the odds. Santos responded on X: “Hey @Kalshi thanks for the lifetime ban from your gambling platform. Let’s see how much longer you guys are around for.” The move follows a separate CFTC settlement two months earlier over the same conduct, in which Santos agreed to pay an additional $35,000. The WSJ was the first to report on the ban. Newsletters Subscribe for the industry’s biggest tech news Related Latest in Fintech