Kalshi hires Empire Consulting Group for federal prediction-market lobbying

Kalshi has hired Empire Consulting Group Inc. to lobby federal officials on prediction markets and finance, adding a Washington firm whose founder, Mike McKay, has close ties to Rep. Hakeem Jeffries of New York. The engagement was registered shortly before the 2026 elections, and Punchbowl News described the firm as having strong relationships with key Democrats on the House Financial Services Committee.

The filing identifies two related issue areas. For prediction markets, Empire is to address a proposed Commodity Futures Trading Commission rule, event-contract regulation and matters affecting prediction markets before the Senate, House, CFTC and Executive Office of the President. A separate finance disclosure covers matters affecting event-contract regulation before the Senate, House and CFTC.

Bloomberg Government reported the hire, identifying McKay as the Empire principal tapped by Kalshi. During the midterm-election week described in that report, Kalshi traders put the Democratic Party's chance of winning House control at nearly 94%.

The federal engagement extends Kalshi's policy activity as its business confronts an unsettled regulatory debate. As we reported in August, the company had already built a state lobbying network reaching at least 41 states amid disputes over whether federal derivatives rules pre-empt state gambling laws.

Kalshi is among the exchanges registered with the CFTC. Prediction markets offer event contracts, through which participants trade on whether specified events will occur; prices emerge from continuous buying and selling in a quote-based system, according to the Congressional Research Service.

Under the Commodity Exchange Act, a CFTC-registered exchange can list event contracts without prior agency approval by self-certifying compliance. But the CFTC's Special Rule permits it to bar contracts it finds contrary to the public interest, including contracts involving gaming or similar activities. The agency issued a proposed event-contract rule in June addressing public-interest determinations and the definition of gaming.

The regulatory question has gained urgency as the sector has expanded into election and sports contracts. The CRS said that sports expansion since early 2025 had produced conflicts and litigation with state gambling regulators, while multiple bills in the 119th Congress would restrict or prohibit event contracts involving sports, elections, government action and other subjects. In April, the Senate also adopted a rule prohibiting senators, Senate officers and Senate employees from participating in prediction markets.