Kalshi advertisement at a bus stop in Washington, DC, March 19, 2026.
Daniel Heuer Bloomberg | Getty Images
Prediction market platform Kalshi said on Wednesday it has suspended and fined three candidates for Congress – from Minnesota, Texas and Virginia – for “inside political trading” in their campaigns.
Kalshi said in a statement that all three candidates, who were suspended for five years each, “were flagged because of our newly released safeguards to prevent political candidates from trading their votes.”
Those allowed to run were Mark Moran, who ran in Virginia’s Democratic primary for Senate before deciding to run as an independent; Minnesota state Sen. Matt Klein, who is running in the Democratic primary race for the 2nd Congressional District; and Ezekiel Enriquez of Texas, who ran in the Republican primary for the state’s 21st Congressional District.
Kalshi identified the candidates by name in various disciplinary notices.
Kalshi said Moran “traded two markets related to his campaign.”
“The first was the market for candidates for government positions in 2026,” said Kalshi. “This person is doing his job in this market.”
“When the trader announced himself as a candidate for the Democratic Primary in the Senate of Virginia, he again traded independently,” the company said.
Moran, when contacted by Kalshi, initially admitted to being a candidate and breaking the rules, but later stopped communicating with the company’s team, according to Kalshi. “Moran has repeatedly refused to resolve this matter through a settlement,” the company said.
Kalshi fined Moran $6,229.30, in addition to suspending him, the company said.
Moran, in a statement on X, said, “I traded myself $100, knowing this was going to happen (and knowing I wouldn’t run for the Democratic nomination) and the attention it would create to highlight how this company is screwing over young men and as a senator I will go after Kalshi and impose huge fines on them – 25% – our national debt – to pay our national taxes.”
“And ironic timing considering that on the streets of DC, Kalshi has to run ads saying they are a fair and legal betting market, bc they know the heat is on them and the boss has already picked a winner with the polymarket… They know they’re f—ed and they’re trying to do the same thing the tobacco companies are doing,” Moran wrote.
Klein and Enriquez both cooperated with Kalshi’s investigation, according to the company.
Klein, who “traded a small amount as a result of his election” also “admitted that the trading activity violated Kalshi exchange rules, agreed to pay a fine of $539.85, and” in his suspension, the company said.
Klein, in a statement to X, said that last October, he heard from friends that there is a prediction market that allows bettors in his primary race.
“I had never bet on a prediction market before,” Klein said. “I was curious how it worked. I opened an account and bet $50 of my own money that I would win the primaries. I was notified in March of 2026 that this was a violation of the field rules. Complying with their request, I paid the fine and accepted the suspension. That was the only bet I ever made in the prediction market.”
“This was a mistake, and I apologize,” Klein wrote.
He added, “My experience, like many others in Minnesota, points to the need for clear rules and regulations for these types of markets.”
Enriquez traded “a slightly larger amount” for his election than Klein, according to Kalshi, who said the amount was less than $100. Enriquez was “fully cooperating with the investigation and agreed to plead guilty to the violation, pay a $784.20 fine, and accept” his suspension, Kalshi said.
Enriquez did not immediately respond to requests for comment.
Disclosure: CNBC and Kalshi have a commercial relationship that includes a small investment by CNBC.
