(PRESS RELEASE) -- Attorney General Raúl Torrez announced that the New Mexico Department of Justice has filed a lawsuit against
Kalshi, Inc. and KalshiEX LLC, alleging the company is unlawfully offering online sports betting in New Mexico while attempting to evade state gaming laws and the carefully negotiated framework that governs legal gaming in the state.
The lawsuit alleges that Kalshi has created an online platform that functions as a sportsbook, allowing users to place wagers on sporting events while operating outside New Mexico’s licensing and regulatory requirements.
“New Mexico has a longstanding and carefully balanced system for regulating gaming that protects consumers, ensures accountability, and respects tribal sovereignty,” said Attorney General Raúl Torrez. “The only lawful gaming in New Mexico operates either under tribal-state gaming compacts, or under strict state regulations to ensure honest gaming free from corruption, and licenses gaming operators only after they explain how they plan to address compulsive gambling. Kalshi has ignored that framework entirely while offering online sports betting within the state. We are filing this lawsuit to protect the integrity of our laws, our regulatory system, and most importantly, consumers.”
The complaint alleges that Kalshi’s platform allows users to wager on the outcomes of sporting events through so-called “event contracts” that function in the same manner as traditional sports bets. According to the lawsuit, Kalshi has offered these products to New Mexico residents without obtaining any gaming license from the State and has allowed participation by individuals between the ages of 18 and 20, despite New Mexico’s minimum gaming age of 21.
The NMDOJ further alleges that Kalshi’s operations undermine New Mexico’s public policy regarding gaming and threaten the state’s sovereign authority to regulate gambling activities within its borders.
New Mexico’s gaming framework reflects decades of collaboration among state leaders, regulators, gaming operators, and tribal governments through tribal-state gaming compacts negotiated with sovereign tribal nations. Revenue generated under tribal gaming compacts supports essential services, economic development, and infrastructure projects in tribal communities throughout the state.
The lawsuit seeks injunctive relief to halt Kalshi’s alleged unlawful operations in New Mexico and to prevent the company from continuing to offer sports-related wagering through its platform.