Panelists included Democratic gubernatorial candidate and State House Minority Leader Cyndi Munson, Tulsa University President Stacy Leeds, who discussed topics like voter turnout in Indian Country, the Nov. 3 gubernatorial election and online gambling.
Prediction markets
Oklahoma Indian Gaming Association Chairman Matthew Morgan said prediction markets, including online apps like Kalshi, threaten tribal sovereignty.
"(The crypto industry), they look at tribes and tribal gaming and they think we're standing in their way. And so they've decided to use their political muscle in order to try to shove us out of the way," Morgan said. "They're going to disregard precedent that has been set for decades on how these things are handled and just say, 'We don't need your permission.'"
Morgan said prediction markets like Kalshi conflict with decades of law established by the Indian Gaming Regulatory Act (IGRA). That federal law, first enacted in 1988, grants tribal nations exclusive authority to operate gaming enterprises on their reservations for funding governance.
Three tribes in California and four in New Mexico have sued Kalshi on separate occasions over the last year, but they all argue the company skirts IGRA by operating gambling markets within their respective reservations.
Kalshi has argued it doesn't offer traditional gambling, but rather a market for financial exchanges.
Its claim has been met with controversy from officials in more than 40 states, including Oklahoma Attorney General Gentner Drummond. In May, he filed a comment with the Commodity Futures Trading Commission alongside other attorneys general, arguing Kalshi is "unequivocally gambling."
Indian Gaming Authority Chairman David Bean, from the Puyallup Tribe of Indians in Washington, agrees. He said that IGRA was also used to grant states regulatory power over some tribal gaming.
"There's a theme here, though. 'When the brown folks get something, we got to regulate it,'" Bean said. "Enter this white-collar activity disguised or described as swaps or trading of financial instruments on sports, betting on sports activities, sports events, when in fact, it is gambling.
"We shouldn't have to talk about the negative impacts of an illegal activity because it is illegal to begin with. All we're asking Congress to do is to enforce their laws."
The gaming authority is currently protesting the potential passage of the Trump-endorsed Clarity Act, Bean said. The law, which passed the House of Representatives last year, would establish a regulatory framework for cryptocurrency in the United States. Under its language, the Commodity Futures Trading Commission would oversee prediction markets.
The Clarity Act currently awaits consideration by the U.S. Senate, which will hold a cloture vote for the bill on Sept. 15. That means senators will determine whether or not they will bring the bill to a final vote. If 60 legislators invoke cloture, a final vote would occur less than 30 hours afterward.
Traders on Kalshi doubt it will become law in 2026.
Morgan has a history with sports betting legislation in the state.
Early this year, he endorsed House Bill 1047 in the Oklahoma State Legislature, which would have legalized sports betting for tribal nations in the state. It failed in the Oklahoma Senate 21-27 in April.
Morgan said cryptocurrency is the means by which prediction markets like Kalshi operate, and that tribal nations must work to stop a final vote on the Clarity Act.
"If we're not there to stop it, I don't think we can expect anybody else to get up there and do it. We have to be at the table," Morgan said. "We have to be in the courtroom. We have to be there to make sure our voices are heard."
Gubernatorial election
For tribal nations, November's election is important. It will decide who takes the reins of Oklahoma's governorship. Tribes have had a rocky relationship with Oklahoma's governor after he argued against renewing model gaming compacts in 2020.
Oklahoma's current Gov. Kevin Stitt, who leaves office next January due to term limits, is a vocal opponent of tribal sovereignty. A Cherokee Nation citizen, he argues Oklahomans should be subject to one set of laws, often challenging the landmark McGirt v. Oklahoma Supreme Court case that reaffirmed half of Oklahoma is Indian Country.
UINO members said they invited every gubernatorial candidate on the ballot to Thursday's meeting because they run a nonpartisan organization, but Munson was the only one to attend.
There, Munson asked tribal leaders for their support, saying she would affirm tribal sovereignty.
"Look at where we are. I mean, look at the choices. I hope I'm the better one to you all," Munson told members in attendance. "I knew that we would end up with someone who would be the current Stitt 2.0 or Ryan Walters-type Republican who would be running on divesting in people's lives and continuing the struggle between working with our tribes."
But Thursday's meeting also included a presentation of issues on the ballot and an overview of Warrior Up to Vote, a statewide campaign designed by UINO to increase voter turnout in Indian Country.
UINO Executive Director Margo Gray pointed to the Aug. 25 Republican gubernatorial runoff election, which was decided by 2,000 votes.
"These elections are close and we could be that deciding factor," Gray said.
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