Kalshi licenses election data from the AP
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Kalshi, one of the world's largest prediction market companies, struck a deal with the Associated Press to license its elections data starting with the 2026 midterms.
Why it matters: As the popularity of betting booms in the U.S., prediction markets are trying to distinguish themselves with partnerships that boost the credibility of information presented on their platforms.
- CNN and CNBC both have exclusive deals with Kalshi.
- Wall Street Journal-parent Dow Jones and Yahoo Finance have inked deals with Kalshi-rival Polymarket.
Zoom in: Ahead of the 2026 midterms, the AP will provide Kalshi with its vote count data and race calls for national and major state elections.
- The AP data, available to users on Kalshi's platform, will include live vote data and native forecasts.
- In addition, the AP will provide Kalshi users engaging in election predictions with critical information, such as what time polls close.
- Integrating AP's live vote count data "enhances Kalshi's election night experience by bringing together real-time vote tallies and market activity," said Kalshi's head of politics Jaron Zhou, in a statement.
The deal, AP vice president of elections David Scott said, is not exclusive to Kalshi.
- The AP doesn't do any exclusive deals with partners, as it's eager to provide its insights to anyone interested in "high-quality, trusted data about elections," per Scott.
The big picture: The Kalshi deal highlights the value of AP's election data for groups beyond news organizations.
- The AP has been counting votes since 1848. During the 2024 election, the company counted the vote and declared winners in nearly 7,000 races with a 99.9% accuracy rate.
- In addition to thousands of newsrooms globally that license the AP's elections data, many big tech companies, political data firms and advocacy groups are also increasingly interested in these types of deals, per Scott.
- "There's just so much more interest from folks about what's happening in democracy and what decisions voters are making," Scott said.
What to watch: Election data licensing is becoming a bigger business for AP.
- Last year, the company created a standalone business unit called AP Elections to help grow the number of elections data customers following a record year in 2024.
