California Gubernatorial Candidate Puts His Money Where His Mouth Is

The fine line between politics and gambling has been blurred once again as a California gubernatorial candidate has made a bet on himself to win the governor’s seat in the Golden State.

Wanna Make a Bet?

Republican California gubernatorial candidate Kyle Langford has stirred the political pot by making a wager of $98.76 through betting contracts with Kalshi that he would win the governor’s race. If successful, he will not only assume the office of governor but will also make a profit of $306.32, collecting a total of $405, including his original stake, assuming the contract stays the same.

California has traditionally been a democratic stronghold, and Langford only has a 6% chance of winning; however, he is leading the Republican field, which could set him up for a general election showdown with the Democratic candidate. However, California has what is called a “jungle primary” system in which the top two primary vote-getters compete in a general election, regardless of party.

Langford has doubled down on his wager by imploring his supporters to make their own wagers on him through the derivatives trading platform provider.

Langford may be the only U.S. politician to make a public wager on himself. In doing so, through the controversial platform Kalshi, he only increases his publicity in a state that does not allow mobile sports betting. Furthermore, the U.S. has outlawed those sportsbooks from offering odds on political races. Kalshi’s governor’s market has only seen $3500 in bets as of this writing.

Kalshi Crosses the Lines

The Lower Manhattan-based Kalshi Inc. is an American financial exchange and prediction market for event contracts. It is not under the purview of state regulators that govern sportsbooks and gambling in their jurisdictions.

However, it does fall under the auspices of the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC), but the new administration has failed to rein in the derivative platform providers despite cease-and-desist orders submitted by several state regulators, including Nevada.

The fact that platforms like Kalshi use sport event contracts in much the same way one can buy commodity futures like pork bellies, gold, or silver allows them to operate in this realm. The company can cross state lines and operate in any state in the nation, impervious to state regulators, at least for now.

Early Legal Win

Kalshi’s platform allows users to assume trading contracts whose value can ebb and flow, unlike sportsbooks, where the bettor has their odds or point spreads fixed from the moment the bet is made. This has drawn the ire of state regulators who jealously guard their authority and the sports betting platforms that pay state taxes to operate, something Kalshi is not obligated to do.

The Nevada Gaming Control Board (NGCB) recently took Kalshi to federal court, but the ruling was an initial victory for Kalshi, stating the NGCB had no authority over a federal entity like Kalshi.

“Every sports pool in Nevada must undergo an extensive investigation prior to licensing, must adhere to strict regulation once licensed, and must pay all applicable taxes and fees,” NGCB Chairman Kirk Hendrick said in a statement. “Any unlawful attempts to circumvent Nevada’s right to regulate gaming activity within its borders will be met with the full force of criminal and civil penalties.”

The legal battle is not over, but as of now, Kalshi is allowed to offer trading contracts throughout the United States.