4 minPolitics
Missouri Supreme Court blocks GOP-backed congressional map ahead of midterms
The Missouri Supreme Court unanimously ruled that a Republican-backed congressional redistricting map cannot be used in November's midterm elections unless approved by voters in a referendum, a decision that drew sharp criticism from President Trump and state GOP leaders.
Missouri’s highest court on Thursday unanimously blocked the state’s newly enacted Republican-backed congressional map from taking effect in the November midterm elections, ruling that the districts must first be approved by voters in a statewide referendum. The decision is a rare setback for Republicans in the national redistricting fight and throws the state’s election calendar into uncertainty just weeks before voters head to the polls.
The court ruled that a referendum petition filed in December, after opponents submitted more than 300,000 signatures, prevented the new districts from being used unless voters uphold them. Republican Secretary of State Denny Hoskins had rejected the petition on primary election day, arguing that the referendum process cannot apply to congressional redistricting. A lower court sided with Hoskins, but the state Supreme Court overturned that decision, stating that the petition was “legal, sufficient, and timely” and that the map “did not go into effect and will not go into effect unless and until approved by the voters.”
As a result, the congressional map adopted after the 2020 census remains in effect for the November general election. The new districts, which were used in last month’s primaries, were drawn by the Republican-controlled legislature and signed by Republican Governor Mike Kehoe in September. The map was designed to make the Kansas City-area district of longtime Democratic Representative Emanuel Cleaver more favorable to Republicans, with the goal of giving the GOP a 7-1 advantage in the state’s congressional delegation.
Missouri Attorney General Catherine Hanaway, a Republican, said she will immediately appeal the case to the U.S. Supreme Court. “Never before in American history has a court overturned a congressional map after a primary and before a general election,” she said in a statement. “This unprecedented decision clearly violates federal law and has thrust our state into a full-fledged constitutional crisis.” Hanaway added that she is confident federal courts will not allow Missouri voters to be disenfranchised.
President Donald Trump called the ruling “ridiculous” and unconstitutional, arguing that there is not enough time to change the map before the election. In a post on Truth Social, he wrote that the decision was “horrible, ridiculous, and unConstitutional” and that “the Election Process, as usual, is being disturbed in America.” He also said the ruling was a “Dark Day for ‘Justice’ in Missouri.”
Governor Kehoe expressed disappointment, saying he is “extremely disappointed in today’s decision by unelected judges and their lack of respect for the legislative process.” He noted that holding a primary under one map and a general election under another is unprecedented and creates uncertainty for voters. “Today’s ruling does not change our belief in the Missouri First Map or the principles behind it,” he wrote on social media.
Representative Cleaver, whose district was targeted by the map, welcomed the ruling. “More than 305,000 Missourians demanded a say in who will represent them in the halls of Congress,” he wrote on X. “Despite the cynical and deeply shameful attempt to silence many of our neighbors, the people fought back and won.” Democratic National Committee Chair Ken Martin called the decision a “big win for democracy and the people of Missouri.”
The Missouri Supreme Court has seven justices, five of whom, including the chief justice, were appointed by Republican governors. The ruling comes as Missouri, once considered a swing state, has shifted decisively to the right over the past two decades. The legal battle over the map is likely to continue, with the state’s appeal to the U.S. Supreme Court pending.
