Santos's Alleged Prediction Market Fraud
DOJ and CFTC Investigate George Santos for Allegedly Profiting from Kalshi Prediction Market Insider Trades
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Former Rep. George Santos is facing criminal and regulatory scrutiny after investigators allege he made profitable bets on the Kalshi prediction market tied to whether he would attend President Donald Trump’s State of the Union in February. Reports say Kalshi detected unusual trading after Santos publicly indicated the day before that he would be in the gallery, but he ultimately skipped the speech and later posted that he was watching from an airport. Kalshi froze Santos’ account and referred the matter to the Justice Department and the Commodity Futures Trading Commission, which are investigating whether the trades involved unlawful insider activity. Santos told NPR the investigation was “news to me” and did not clearly confirm or deny having a Kalshi account. The probe adds to his legal troubles, including a prior conviction for wire fraud and aggravated identity theft that led to prison time before Trump commuted his sentence last year. The case has also brought renewed attention to prediction markets and whether trading around public officials’ actions raises insider-activity concerns.
Key Points
1
Santos’ own posts described both attendance and later absence in more detail than previously summarized: in an X video posted the day before the Feb. 24 State of the Union, he said, “I’m going to be there for the State of the Union in the gallery, guys,” and the next day he tweeted, “Watching SOTU from an airport tv was not part of the plan! FML.”
2
The Kalshi market in question involved large volume and specific other high-profile names: CNN reported traders placed “millions of dollars” in bets not only on Santos, but also on Barron Trump, USA Hockey star Jack Hughes, and “Nick Shirley, the MAGA journalist whose Minnesota fraud story went viral.”
3
NPR’s reporting (as summarized by other outlets) specifies the alleged structure of the trade and alleged proceeds: sources said Santos had already placed bets on Kalshi that he would not attend the speech, and that investigators believe he “misled the public to bilk ‘tens of thousands of dollars.’”
4
The underlying fraud case against Santos—relevant to why prosecutors/regulators view this as part of a broader pattern—was tied to a broader misconduct description at his 2024 plea: Business Insider reported Santos pleaded guilty to wire fraud and aggravated identity theft and prosecutors said it included “falsifying campaign finance reports, stealing donors’ credit card information, collecting unemployment benefits while employed, and lying about his finances.” Business Insider also reported he surrendered to the Federal Correctional Institution in Fairton, New Jersey, in July 2025 to begin an “87-month prison sentence,” which Trump later commuted.
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