Prediction markets are fueling a new era of political graft (opens in new tab)

In the days leading up to the 2026 State of the Union, George Santos was acting—at least in public—like a man preparing to take a victory lap. In October 2025, President Donald Trump had to various forms of campaign funds-adjacent fraud. Four short months later, on X, Santos began teasing his triumphant return to the chamber from which he’d been expelled two years earlier. “I’m going to be there for the State of the Union, in the gallery, guys,” Santos On Kalshi, a prediction market where use...