KalshiEX LLC v. Ellison; QCX LLC (Polymarket US) v. Ellison
Statute enjoined; not in effect8th Cir.Statutory Challenge
Docket last checked September 27, 2026. Snapshot — not legal advice.
As of September 27, 2026, the legality of prediction markets in Minnesota is unresolved — litigation is ongoing with no final ruling yet. Minnesota status and cases →
Overview
Minnesota became the first state to ban prediction-market platforms by statute (signed May 2026, set to take effect August 1). Three suits followed and Judge Katherine M. Menendez decided them together: the United States and the CFTC (No. 0:26-cv-02661), Kalshi (No. 0:26-cv-02778) and QCX LLC, doing business as Polymarket US (No. 0:26-cv-02841). On July 27, 2026 one 44-page opinion granted all three preliminary-injunction motions.
Read the order narrowly, because it is narrower than the headlines. The injunction bars enforcement of Minn. Stat. § 609.7615, as amended by SF 3432, only against entities registered with the CFTC as designated contract markets — not against everyone. The ground is express preemption alone; the court expressly declined to reach implied preemption or the First Amendment, calling them questions saved for another day, and noted its preliminary assessment that the statute may not be preempted in all its applications. That distinguishes it from Flaherty, which turned on implied preemption, and the opinion says so directly. No appellate docket has been identified.
Changes
Logged September 27, 2026
Schedule
Minnesota did not appeal the July 27 injunction against its prediction-market ban: the lead docket shows no notice of appeal after the sixty-day window closed September 25. The case moves to merits scheduling, with a conference reset to October 15.
Minnesota signs the first statutory ban on prediction-market platforms (effective Aug. 1).
May 27, 2026
Kalshi sues Attorney General Keith Ellison and other officials (No. 0:26-cv-02778).
June 3, 2026
QCX LLC, doing business as Polymarket US, files a parallel suit (No. 0:26-cv-02841).
July 27, 2026
Judge Menendez grants all three preliminary-injunction motions in one opinion, on express preemption, enjoining enforcement against CFTC-registered designated contract markets.
What's next: The injunction runs until a final decision on the merits. The lead docket shows no notice of appeal through September 27, 2026, after the sixty-day window for an appeal in the federal government’s case closed September 25. The State answered on August 17. A Rule 16 scheduling conference for the consolidated cases is set for October 15 before Magistrate Judge David T. Schultz. Implied preemption and the First Amendment claims remain undecided below. October 15, 2026: Rule 16 scheduling conference, consolidated Minnesota cases
Parties
Plaintiffs
KalshiEX LLC
QCX LLC d/b/a Polymarket US
Defendants
Keith Ellison (Attorney General of Minnesota)
Tim Walz (Governor of Minnesota)
Jon Anglin
This page is informational, not legal advice. Nearly every entry in this tracker is a preliminary ruling under appeal. Always verify a platform's current, location-specific eligibility directly with the venue before relying on this page.