defense · stock-sale · committee-conflict

The Swing-Trading Trustee: Rep. Ro Khanna’s Family Trust Actively Traded Palantir

The rapid-fire trading of a defense contractor by the household of a key Armed Services subcommittee member highlights the challenges of congressional stock portfolios.

2026-06-23 — Ro Khanna · PLTR

Key facts

• A family trust connected to Rep. Ro Khanna's household traded Palantir three times in 12 days, including a purchase of between $15,001 and $50,000 on May 15, 2026.
• Rep. Khanna serves on the House Committee on Armed Services, which oversees defense software contractors like Palantir.
• The trades are managed independently by a third-party trustee for a trust set up by Khanna's in-laws, and neither Khanna nor his wife have advance knowledge of the trades.
• The initial purchase occurred shortly after Palantir reported strong Q1 earnings, and on the same day that a Palantir director disclosed selling shares.

Rep. Ro Khanna (D-Calif.) is one of the most prominent advocates in Congress for banning members of Congress and their spouses from trading individual stocks. Yet, a family trust connected to his household has been actively swing-trading Palantir Technologies Inc. (PLTR), a major defense software contractor heavily overseen by Khanna's own committee.

On May 15, 2026, the trust purchased between $15,001 and $50,000 of Palantir stock. This transaction was part of a massive batch of activity, with the trust executing 181 other trades within a single day. Over the next 12 days, the trust traded Palantir twice more: a smaller purchase of between $1,001 and $15,000 on May 21, followed by a sale of between $1,001 and $15,000 on May 27.

These trades were executed within a family trust set up by Rep. Khanna's in-laws, which is managed independently by a third-party trustee. In compliance with House Ethics rules, Khanna and his wife do not direct or have advance knowledge of these trades.

Nevertheless, the rapid movement in and out of a key defense contractor's stock highlights the challenges of appearance-of-conflict issues. Khanna serves on the House Committee on Armed Services, specifically sitting on the Cyber, Information Technologies, and Innovation subcommittee, which oversees military software and artificial intelligence. Palantir's core business relies heavily on Department of Defense contracts and federal IT procurement.

The May 15 purchase occurred 11 days after Palantir filed a Form 8-K detailing a blowout Q1 2026 earnings report, which highlighted an 84% year-over-year surge in U.S. government revenue. Interestingly, while Khanna's family trust was buying, Palantir insiders were selling; on the exact day of the trust's purchase, Palantir director Alexander D. Moore disclosed multiple open-market sales of company stock.

Members of Congress are required by the STOCK Act to disclose trades within 45 days, and disclosed amounts are reported in ranges. Khanna disclosed the May 15 purchase on June 9, well within the legal window. Our analysis scored the transaction 52/130, reflecting the tight committee alignment offset by the trust's high-volume, automated trading style.

For a lawmaker championing a stock-trading ban, the hands-off trust keeps the ethics rules satisfied, but the optics remain highly active.

Sources

1. Palantir Form 8-K Q1 2026 Earnings Press Release — SEC EDGAR
2. Palantir Form 4 Insider Disclosures — SEC EDGAR

All stories · Ro Khanna · PLTR