NYC NOW - Evening Roundup: New Yorkers Turn Out for Election Day, and Why New York State Wants to Shut Down the Company Behind NYC’s Mayor’s Race Odds

Episode Date: November 4, 2025

Early election numbers show more people voted in New York City than in total for many previous year elections. Meanwhile, state regulators say Kalshi has been operating an illegal betting operation but the company says it’s not a betting platform.

New Yorkers turn out for Election Day and why New York State wants to shut down the trading platform letting people put money on the mayor's race. From WMYC, this is NYC now. I'm Jene Pierre. Early election numbers show more people voted in New York City than in total for many previous year elections. The New York City Board of Elections says over a million people voted before noon on Election Day. That number includes more than seven. 735,000 voters who cast ballots during the early voting period that ended Sunday. 37-year-old David Stutter wasn't part of that early voting crowd.

He hit the polls early Tuesday morning. I like voting on the day. I know that's opposite of most Democrats, but I just feel like it's a fun thing to do with my daughter. Today we voted for Zoron. I'm not sure all his ideas are going to come to fruition, but I think he is someone I would be proud of to represent our city. 78-year-old Barbara Hargraves disagrees.

She thinks Momdani isn't good enough for the job. I'm willing for Kroma. Even though I really don't want to, but he got a little more experience. At least you know where he's coming from. Meanwhile, Sandra Chase thinks Curtis Slewa is the best candidate. She even defended the Republican as a random passerby questioned her vote. I'm voting for him because he's the only man qualified to run in his city. Isn't he racist?

He is not racist. That's what the press would have you believe. What my mom would have me believe? Well, your mom would have you believe. He's racist. He's anything but. Make your voice heard at the ballot box. Polls are open until 9 Tuesday night.

You can check out our voter guide on our news site, Gothamist. You've probably seen those Kalshi billboards around Times Square, showing the latest odds on the New York City mayor. race. No? Well, the state says the company is a betting platform, but Kalshi denies it. More on that after the break. Have you seen those billboards around the city showing the latest odds on the New York City mayor race? They're on some bus stops and in Times Square. They have pictures of Zoran Mamdani and Andrew Cuomo side by side with percentages like Mamdani 92 percent and Cuomo 8 percent. Well, the company behind them is called Kalshi, and New York State is trying to

partially shut it down. So the way it works, users can trade something called event contracts on the outcome of future events, like the mayor's race. New York State says it's a betting platform, but the company says it's not. Now, I don't know the ends and outs of it, but WMYC's John Campbell does. And John joins me now. What's up? Hey, Janae. So Kauci says it's not a betting platform, but people are putting up some real money, John. How does it work? Yeah, I mean, you're right. I mean, collectively people are putting up millions upon millions of dollars on calci and similar things like Polly Market, which is another company that isn't operating in the States at the moment. But they're what's called predictive markets. And what that means is the company lists all sorts of different events or things you can predict, such as the mayor's race, like we're talking about here.

And let me tell you, at least one mayoral candidate has taken note. I mean, take a listen to Zeran Mamdani at his big rally in Forest Hills last month. When you see the Kalshi odds that have our chances of victory in the 90s, know this. You are reading the same things that Andrew Cuomo read when he went to sleep each night in June. So here's how it works. You buy an event contract predicting an event one way or the other. That costs you anywhere from a penny to 99 cents. And then if your prediction is right, you get a full.

full dollar for each contract you have. So take the mayor's race. I mean, if you think Zeran Mamdani is going to win, you can buy as many contracts as you want for about 92 cents each as of Tuesday morning. If he does win, you get a buck for each share you bought. Nice. Andrew Cuomo is the underdog, so his contract only costs about nine cents. If he wins, you're really in the money. You get a buck, but it's a much higher profit margin since it only cost you nine cents a piece to begin with. And, Jenae, as Maldani referenced in that clip, I mean, it was flipped before the Democratic

primary in June. Cuomo was the big favorite and the Kalshi odds, but he lost. All right. So what's the problem that the state sees with Kalshi's operations? Is it over the election? No, it's not about the election, actually, at least not directly. I mean, it's really about sports. The State Gaming Commission regulates casino gambling in New York.

York, and that includes mobile sports betting on platforms like Fandual, Draft Kings. You see their ads everywhere, too. Those are legal sports books, and they're paying millions upon millions of dollars in taxes every year to the state. So the commission sent a cease and desist letter to Calhesee late last month, accusing it of operating an illegal sports betting operation, because much like the mayor's race, you can buy these event contracts that pay out based on the outcome of a sports. event too. So the state ordered Kalshi to stop taking money on sporting events and horse

races, but it didn't explicitly mention the money Kalshi takes in on elections. That's in part because the Gaming Commission only has jurisdiction over sports betting and casino gambling, but depending on what the courts decide, that could come into play later in the process. Okay. So, John, I've never really had a reason to ask this question, but is it even legal to bet on an election? Well, the short answer is no. I mean, the New York Constitution only allows limited forms of gambling, and gambling on elections certainly isn't among them. But that's the thing. Cal she says it's not a betting platform at all. It says that it's a futures market. And Calci thinks that it is properly regulated by the federal government, not the state. New York and other states, including New Jersey, Nevada, they say that's nonsense. Because basically, I mean, if it walks like a bet and quacks like a bet, it's a bet. Yeah. Yeah. So I talked to a guy named Carl Slate. He's an attorney who's based in New York State and he specializes in gambling law.

Here we have a collision of the unstoppable force versus the immovable object where you have a new frontier in the world of wagering and who is going to regulate it. He says states get to regulate betting. So this whole thing comes down to whether. the courts side with Kalshi or the states. John, I know you mentioned that Kaushi sees itself as a futures market, but how has the company responded to the state's moves? Well, Kalshi sued the state within a couple days of getting the letter. And that was basically a lawsuit asking the federal courts to block New York State from enforcing that cease and desist order that we talked about. And again, the company's lawsuit argues it's not a betting platform

at all. It made all those arguments we talked about, but then also points to the fact that, you know, people who buy these event contracts aren't betting against the house like you are at a casino or or Fandul, draft kings, that kind of thing. Instead, these people are paired up with other people who are trading contracts of their own, and that's what the main difference, Kalshi says, is between them and a sports book. Okay, so what happens to folks who got an event contract on the mayor's race? well, for now it's business as usual. I mean, the state is trying to at least partially shut Kalshi down in New York, but as part of Kalshi's lawsuit, it agreed to hold off on taking any firm action against the company until a judge gets to kind of look over all the legal arguments, which that at the very least won't be until late November.

So until then, you can log on to Kalshi. You can put money on all sorts of different things, whether it's sports or elections or whatever else. I mean, even who will be the most searched person on Google at the end of the year, which, Jene, by the way, Pope Leo is the leader in the clubhouse based on the Calci Prize. I'm guilty. I'm guilty. That was me. You've Googled them? Yep. Second place, Donald Trump. Ah, of course, of course. All right. So what's next for Calci's fate rests on these court decisions, really, not just in New York, but in New Jersey and Nevada and all the other states that have taken some sort of action. Carl Slate, that gambling attorney I talked to, he told me there's

certainly a chance that different courts in different parts of the country will take different opinions on the matter. And if that's the case, there's a good chance this could make its way all the way to the Supreme Court. So stay tuned. We certainly will. That's WMYC's John Campbell. Thanks a lot, John. Thank you, Janay. If you're thinking of heading to MSG for Knicks game, it's a good time to do that. because the team is on a five-game home stand through November 14th. The Knicks won Monday night, 119 to 102, against the Washington Wizards at the Garden. Wednesday night, they host the Minnesota Timberwolves.

On Sunday, they'll play the Brooklyn Nets, who are still looking for their first win of the season. The Knicks' final home game in this homestand will be Friday the 14th against the Miami Heat. Thanks for listening to NYC now from WMYC. I'm Jene Pierre. We'll be back tomorrow with the latest on the election in New York and New Jersey.