New Mexico Attorney General sues Kalshi over sports event contracts

New Mexico Attorney General Raúl Torrez has filed a lawsuit against prediction market platform Kalshi, alleging the company is offering unlicensed sports betting in violation of state gaming laws.

The lawsuit, filed in Santa Fe District Court, claims Kalshi is effectively operating as a sportsbook without obtaining approval from the state’s Gaming Control Board or complying with regulations governing gambling activity.

Torrez argues that lawful gaming in New Mexico is restricted to operations conducted under tribal-state gaming compacts or state-regulated frameworks, adding that Kalshi has bypassed those requirements while offering sports-related event contracts to residents.

The legal action follows a separate lawsuit filed by several New Mexico tribes, including Pojoaque Pueblo, Sandia Pueblo, Isleta Pueblo and the Mescalero Apache Tribe, which allege the platform infringes tribal gaming compacts and federal Indian gaming laws.

New Mexico joins a growing number of states challenging Kalshi’s operations, while the company continues to argue that its platform offers federally regulated financial event contracts rather than gambling products. The dispute has become part of a broader legal battle over whether prediction markets fall under federal commodities regulation or state gambling laws.

Kalshi has not publicly responded to the New Mexico filing. Court rulings across the US have so far been mixed, with some federal judges siding with the company and others backing state regulators.