Kalshi New Hampshire: The State That Sat This One Out

Kalshi New Hampshire is a strange case to research, because the state with arguably the clearest financial reason to fight prediction markets — a DraftKings monopoly that hands the government roughly half of every dollar wagered — is one of only five states that didn't sign the 44-attorney-general letter telling the CFTC to back off. No lawsuit, no cease-and-desist, just one state senator publicly worried and an attorney general who hasn't moved.

Legal status in New Hampshire

New Hampshire runs one of the most unusual sports betting markets in the country: instead of licensing multiple sportsbooks, the state granted DraftKings a sole-source monopoly through the New Hampshire Lottery Commission in exchange for a revenue share reported at roughly 51% of mobile gross gaming revenue — one of the highest cuts any state takes anywhere. The Lottery exercised its first two-year contract extension in early 2026, keeping DraftKings as the only licensed operator (three retail locations, in Seabrook, Dover, and Manchester, plus the statewide app) through June 30, 2028. That arrangement has generated more than $170 million for the state since sports betting launched in 2019, funding education and other state services. Kalshi has no agreement with New Hampshire, pays the state nothing, and operates purely on its federal CFTC designation — which is exactly what worries Lottery executive director Charlie McIntyre, who told New Hampshire Public Radio in March 2026 that "the expansion of prediction markets could erode New Hampshire revenues from sports betting." State Sen. Tim Lang, R-Sanbornton, went further, telling NHPR in April 2026 he planned to file legislation authorizing New Hampshire to join other states already suing prediction-market operators, arguing "we have a revenue model for our sports betting that allows us to pay for education and other state services that Kalshi is completely going around by avoiding our gaming laws." Yet when Ohio led a coalition of 44 state attorneys general in a July 2026 letter telling the CFTC it lacks authority over sports event contracts, New Hampshire's AG was not on it — one of only five states that sat out, alongside Florida, Georgia, Missouri, and Texas. No New Hampshire court, the Attorney General's office, or the Lottery Commission has sued Kalshi, fined it, or issued a cease-and-desist. As of this writing, a resident can open a Kalshi account and trade sports event contracts with nothing in state law currently stopping it.

State gambling authority: New Hampshire Lottery Commission (regulates the DraftKings sportsbook monopoly only; has not asserted jurisdiction over Kalshi; the Attorney General has not signed the multistate coalition letter or filed suit)

Here’s what makes Kalshi New Hampshire an odd case: this is a state whose entire sports betting model runs on taking roughly half of every dollar wagered through a single monopoly contract, which makes it the state with the clearest financial motive in the country to fight prediction markets. And its attorney general is one of only five in the nation who didn’t sign the letter telling the CFTC to back off.

A Monopoly, Not a Market

Most states with legal sports betting license several competing operators. New Hampshire licensed one. The New Hampshire Lottery Commission struck a sole-source deal with DraftKings back in 2019, trading exclusivity for a revenue share reported at roughly 51% of mobile gross gaming revenue — one of the richest cuts any state takes from any sportsbook deal anywhere. The Lottery exercised its first two-year extension in early 2026, locking DraftKings in as the sole operator — three retail counters, in Seabrook, Dover, and Manchester, plus the statewide app — through June 30, 2028.

New Hampshire’s sports betting deal, by the numbers:

One licensed operator: DraftKings, via sole-source contract with the NH Lottery Commission
~51% of mobile gross gaming revenue paid to the state
More than $170 million generated for New Hampshire since 2019
Contract extended through June 30, 2028
Minimum betting age: 18, not 21

The Senator Who Wants to Sue, and the AG Who Hasn’t

State Sen. Tim Lang, R-Sanbornton, told New Hampshire Public Radio in April 2026 that he planned to introduce legislation letting New Hampshire join other states already suing prediction-market operators. His reasoning was blunt: “We have a revenue model for our sports betting that allows us to pay for education and other state services that Kalshi is completely going around by avoiding our gaming laws.” NH Lottery executive director Charlie McIntyre made the same point more cautiously a few weeks earlier, saying the state anticipates prediction markets “could erode New Hampshire revenues from sports betting.”

Then the letter went out without New Hampshire on it. When 44 state attorneys general, led by Ohio, told the CFTC in July 2026 it has no authority over sports event contracts, New Hampshire sat it out — one of just five holdouts, alongside Florida, Georgia, Missouri, and Texas. Nobody has explained why publicly. It means the state with arguably the most money on the table said nothing.

Is Kalshi Legal in New Hampshire? What’s Actually on the Books

New Hampshire’s gambling statute was built around one thing: the DraftKings monopoly. It doesn’t reach a CFTC-registered exchange trading event contracts, because it was never written with one in mind. No New Hampshire court has tested whether it should. No AG lawsuit, no Lottery Commission cease-and-desist, no fine. Compare that to next door: Massachusetts won a preliminary injunction against Kalshi in January 2026. New Hampshire hasn’t filed anything.

Is Kalshi Legit in New Hampshire?

As a company, the answer doesn’t change state to state: CFTC designation since 2020, KYC-verified accounts, dollar settlement. What’s unresolved in New Hampshire isn’t whether Kalshi pays out — it’s whether the state should be getting a cut the way it does from DraftKings, and so far the answer from Concord has been silence, not a ruling.

How Safe Is Kalshi for New Hampshire Traders Right Now?

Safe in the CFTC-oversight sense — KYC, dollar settlement, federal designation — not in the sense of a state seal of approval, because the Lottery Commission has never looked at Kalshi at all. One quirk works in Kalshi’s favor here that doesn’t apply in states like New Mexico: New Hampshire’s own DraftKings sportsbook accepts 18-year-olds, so Kalshi’s 18-and-up account minimum doesn’t undercut a stricter state age rule the way it does elsewhere.

Trading event contracts can lose the full stake regardless of what Concord decides to do next. It is not a way to make money, in New Hampshire or anywhere else on this site. 21+ recommended regardless of the state minimum; the National Problem Gambling Helpline, 1-800-522-4700, is free and confidential.

Kalshi New Hampshire — Frequently Asked Questions

Is Kalshi legal in New Hampshire?

Nothing in force says otherwise. New Hampshire has no online-sportsbook law written to reach a CFTC-registered exchange — its statute covers the DraftKings monopoly specifically — and no court order, AG lawsuit, or Lottery Commission action currently blocks Kalshi here. A state senator has talked about changing that; as of this writing, he hasn't.

Why didn't New Hampshire sign the states' letter against Kalshi?

That's the genuinely odd part. In July 2026, 44 state attorneys general told the CFTC it has no authority over sports event contracts — a coalition led by Ohio. New Hampshire's AG wasn't one of them, joining only Florida, Georgia, Missouri, and Texas in sitting it out. No public explanation has been given, which is notable given that New Hampshire's own Lottery director has said publicly that prediction markets could cut into the state's sports betting revenue.

Does Kalshi threaten New Hampshire's DraftKings deal?

That's the argument, not a settled fact. DraftKings pays New Hampshire roughly 51% of mobile gross gaming revenue under its sole-source monopoly contract — more than $170 million to the state since 2019 — and Kalshi pays nothing while offering overlapping sports markets. Lottery executive director Charlie McIntyre said in March 2026 he expects prediction-market growth to erode that revenue over time, though no state analysis has yet put a number on it.

Is Kalshi legit in New Hampshire?

As a company, yes — CFTC designation since 2020, KYC-verified accounts, dollar settlement, the same baseline every state page on this site starts from. New Hampshire's unresolved question is whether the state should be collecting a cut like it does from DraftKings, not whether Kalshi honors a winning contract.

Is Kalshi safe to use in New Hampshire right now?

You can open an account and trade today with no injunction or fine in effect, unlike neighboring Massachusetts, which won a preliminary injunction against Kalshi in January 2026. "Safe" means CFTC oversight and identity verification — it doesn't mean the New Hampshire Lottery Commission has certified anything, because it hasn't looked at Kalshi at all.

Do you have to be 21 to use Kalshi in New Hampshire?

No — and this is one state where that doesn't create the age-gap argument other states have used against Kalshi. New Hampshire sets its own DraftKings sportsbook age at 18, one of the few states with a legal sports betting age under 21, so Kalshi's 18-and-up account minimum lines up with state gambling law here instead of undercutting it.

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