Kalshi in Illinois: Legal Status

Status as of October 16, 2026

Illinois's gaming regulator and a federal court in Chicago have both addressed Kalshi by name. The Illinois Gaming Board's Administrator wrote to KalshiEX LLC d/b/a Kalshi on April 1, 2025 that the Board believed Kalshi was offering unlicensed sports wagering in the state, and directed it to stop. Kalshi then sued Attorney General Kwame Raoul and other Illinois officials on June 23, 2026, and on October 2, 2026 Judge Martha M. Pacold partly granted Kalshi's motion for a preliminary injunction, together with the matching motions of Coinbase and the United States.

That ruling is preliminary. The court has asked the parties for a proposed injunction by October 29, 2026, and until an injunction is entered its scope is not stated here. This page draws no conclusion about Kalshi's standing in Illinois or about whether anyone in Illinois may trade on it.

What the filings and letters show

The Gaming Board's letter. The April 1, 2025 letter to Kalshi, addressed to Kalshi's chief executive and its chief regulatory officer, cites the Sports Wagering Act, 230 ILCS 45, and the Criminal Code, 720 ILCS 5/28-1(a). It says the Board "is aware that Kalshi is engaged in sports wagering activity in Illinois over the Internet and on mobile devices," that the Board "has neither licensed nor authorized Kalshi" to do so, and that "Kalshi and anyone affiliated with its operations are directed to cease and desist this illegal activity." It warns that failure to comply "may subject Kalshi to civil or criminal penalties." The Board's Cease and Desist Letters page still lists it. The letter is the Board's allegation; it is not a court finding or a penalty.

Kalshi's lawsuit. KalshiEX LLC v. Raoul, No. 1:26-cv-07363 in the Northern District of Illinois, names Governor JB Pritzker, Attorney General Raoul and Gaming Board officials as defendants. It is heard together with Coinbase Financial Markets, Inc. v. Raoul, No. 1:25-cv-15406, and United States of America v. State of Illinois, No. 1:26-cv-03659. The court's opinion explains why Coinbase is involved: the two companies partnered so that Coinbase's users can buy and sell contracts listed on Kalshi with cryptocurrency held at Coinbase.

The October 2, 2026 opinion. Filed as Doc. 60 on Kalshi's docket, the opinion holds that the plaintiffs "have demonstrated that Kalshi is a designated contract market, that its core sports-related contracts are 'swaps,' and that Illinois is likely attempting to exercise control over Kalshi's sale of those 'swaps.'" It concludes that "Much of Illinois law likely conflicts with the Commodity Exchange Act and is accordingly likely preempted," while leaving for further argument the transaction fee that Illinois's Fiscal Year 2027 budget added to 230 ILCS 45/25-90. On October 8, 2026 the parties, Kalshi included, jointly told the court that briefing on those fees was not needed; on October 9 the court kept the October 29 deadline.

The Cook County case. Kalshi companies are defendants in Illinois Gambling Recovery LLC v. Kalshi Inc., No. 1:25-cv-11374. On April 29, 2026 Judge Manish S. Shah granted the plaintiff's motion to remand and sent the case to the Circuit Court of Cook County. This page does not describe the claims in it.

Kalshi's New Jersey case. In Flaherty v. KalshiEX, LLC, No. 26-299, New Jersey's gaming officials have asked the Supreme Court to review the Third Circuit's decision of April 6, 2026 in Kalshi's New Jersey case. Illinois's Attorney General signed the October 7, 2026 brief of Ohio, 38 other states and the District of Columbia supporting that petition.

What is not documented

The injunction's terms, including which Illinois officials it binds and which of Kalshi's contracts it covers, appear in no order on the docket entries available through October 16, 2026, and are not stated here. Several other Northern District cases name Kalshi; they were located but not read, and nothing is said about them. The Cook County file of the remanded case was not read. No Kalshi notice describing its own availability to Illinois residents is relied on here.

What happens next

The parties are to file a proposed injunction by October 29, 2026, and the court's October 9 entry allows them to file it earlier. In No. 26-299 the response to New Jersey's petition is due at the Supreme Court on November 9, 2026. This page is next reviewed on October 30, 2026, and sooner after any order in Kalshi's case or any Gaming Board action naming Kalshi. The wider Illinois picture, including the Board's letters to other venues, is on the legal status page.

What this page does not do

This page is not legal advice. It reports the Gaming Board's letter to Kalshi and the federal court filings in Kalshi's case, each with its date, and draws no conclusion about whether Kalshi may operate in Illinois or whether anyone in Illinois may trade on it. It makes no prediction about how any court will decide and says nothing about how gains are taxed. Errors are corrected on this page and dated; the contact page says where to report one.