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The Missouri Supreme Court on Thursday unanimously blocked newly enacted Republican-backed congressional districts from being used in November’s midterm elections, ruling that voters must first approve the map in a statewide referendum.
The ruling marks a rare setback for Republicans in a national redistricting battle.
The GOP had aimed to use Missouri’s new congressional map to help them win an additional seat and hold onto its slim House majority.
The court ruled that the referendum petition, filed in December after opponents submitted more than 300,000 signatures, prevented the new districts from taking effect unless approved by voters.
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Republican Secretary of State Denny Hoskins waited until primary Election Day last month to reject the petition, arguing that the referendum process cannot be used for congressional redistricting. A lower court sided with Hoskins, but the state Supreme Court overturned his decision.
“The referendum petition was legal, sufficient, and timely, and the secretary incorrectly concluded otherwise,” the court said in its ruling. The measure with the new districts “did not go into effect and will not go into effect unless and until approved by the voters.”
People opposing a congressional redistricting plan rally outside the Missouri Supreme Court while displaying the number of petition signatures submitted seeking a statewide vote on the measure. (AP Photo/David A. Lieb)
Now, the congressional map adopted after the 2020 census “remains in full force and effect for the November 2026 general election,” the court said.
Once considered a swing state, Missouri has dramatically shifted to the right over the past two decades.
Missouri Attorney General Catherine Hanaway, a Republican, plans to 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. This unprecedented decision clearly violates federal law and has thrust our state into a full‑fledged constitutional crisis,” Hanaway said in a statement.
“We are confident that the federal courts will not allow every Missouri voter to be disenfranchised, which is what today’s decision does.”
President Donald Trump called Thursday’s ruling “ridiculous” and argued it was unconstitutional, saying there will not be enough time to change the map before November’s elections.
“The Missouri Supreme Court just ridiculously ruled in favor of changing the maps back to what they were a long time ago,” he wrote on Truth Social. “It’s called, Ancient History! The problem is, according to Legal Scholars, that not only was the ruling horrible, ridiculous, and unConstitutional, but there won’t be enough time to change the map back with the Election coming up in a very short period of time.
“The Election Process, as usual, is being disturbed in America! Missouri must be able to use the map that was in effect just a couple of months ago, in the Primary. This is a Dark Day for ‘Justice’ in Missouri!”
Opponents of a congressional redistricting plan rally outside the Missouri Capitol. (AP Photo/David A. Lieb)
Missouri’s new districts were used in the primaries last month, but the state Supreme Court said they cannot be used again unless voters first uphold the new districts passed by the GOP-controlled legislature and signed by Republican Gov. Mike Kehoe last September.
Kehoe said he is “extremely disappointed in today’s decision by unelected judges and their lack of respect for the legislative process.”
“Holding a primary election under one congressional map and a general election under another is unprecedented and creates uncertainty for Missouri voters,” he said on X. “Today’s ruling does not change our belief in the Missouri First Map or the principles behind it, and we will continue to stand behind it as the legal process moves forward.”
Five of the seven current justices on the Missouri Supreme Court, including the chief justice, were appointed by Republican governors.
The new map targeted longtime Democratic Rep. Emanuel Cleaver’s Kansas City-area district by shifting it eastward to include rural right-leaning voters. The map was intended to make Cleaver’s district more favorable to Republicans, who hoped it would produce a 7-1 advantage in the state’s congressional delegation.
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The new map targeted the district of longtime Democratic Rep. Emanuel Cleaver, pictured, by shifting it eastward to include rural right-leaning voters. (AP Photo/David A. Lieb)
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Cleaver responded to the ruling by saying, “The people fought back and won.”
“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. This reaffirms that the people should choose their politicians, not the other way around. Democracy prevails.”
Democratic National Committee Chair Ken Martin also called it a “big win for democracy and the people of Missouri.”
“Democrats will continue fighting to end the Republican gerrymandering sham and ensure all voters can make their voices heard,” he wrote on X.
‘ Paul Steinhauser and The Associated Press contributed to this report.
