Utah lawmakers form united front in push to ban prediction markets

Utah lawmakers are launching a unified effort to ban prediction markets like Kalshi and Polymarket, which they view as gambling despite the platforms' claims to be financial derivatives. The push puts conservative Utah Republicans at odds with the Trump administration, which has reversed Biden-era restrictions and backs the rapidly growing industry, even as roughly 20 federal lawsuits challenge the platforms nationwide. Governor Spencer Cox and state senators argue prediction markets have "no place in Utah," a state with among the nation's strongest anti-gambling laws rooted in its heavily Mormon population's opposition to wagering.