Prediction market platform Kalshi has fined and suspended a Texas congressional candidate after he placed bets on the outcome of his own primary race, the latest in the company’s crackdown on what it calls political insider trading.
Ezekiel Enriquez, who ran in the Republican primary for Texas’ 21st Congressional District, was fined $784.20 and banned from the platform for five years. Kalshi announced the disciplinary action Wednesday. Regulatory documents show Enriquez wagered less than $100 on contracts tied to his own candidacy. The company said he fully cooperated with its investigation and agreed to the settlement.
Enriquez finished 11th out of 12 candidates in the March 2026 Republican primary for the district, which covers parts of the Texas Hill Country north of San Antonio as well as communities including New Braunfels, Kerrville and portions of the San Antonio suburbs. He received about 1.4 percent of the vote.
Today, we're releasing notices related to three enforcement investigations.
— robertjdenault (@robertjdenault) April 22, 2026
All three cases concern political insider trading and were flagged because of our newly released safeguards to block political candidates from trading on their own elections.
Kalshi does not tolerate…
Kalshi described the trades as violations of its CFTC-approved exchange rules, which prohibit candidates from betting on elections in which they have non-public information or direct influence. The platform recently strengthened its safeguards specifically to flag and block such activity.
The Texas case is one of three enforcement actions Kalshi released this week. Minnesota state Sen. Matt Klein, a Democrat running for Congress in Minnesota’s 2nd District, received a $539.85 fine and five-year suspension after cooperating. Mark Moran, an independent candidate for U.S. Senate in Virginia, received a $6,229.30 fine and five-year suspension after declining to settle.
Prediction markets like Kalshi have grown rapidly in popularity, allowing users to buy and sell contracts on election outcomes and other real-world events. The platforms operate under federal oversight but have drawn increased attention over potential fairness and integrity issues.
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Ezekiel Enriquez was fined $784.20 and banned from the platform for five years.
Ezekiel Enriquez was fined $784.20 and banned from the platform for five years.
