For the third time, the Supreme Court on Friday shut down efforts by Missouri Republicans to use a new congressional map in the midterm elections already underway. The high court blocked an appeals court ruling that sought to revive the 2025 map despite previous judicial pushback, ensuring the state uses a 2022 map for six Republican and two Democratic seats.
The Bottom Line:
- The Supreme Court granted an emergency application filed by the group People Not Politicians, preventing the implementation of the 2025 Republican-drawn map.
- Missouri’s ongoing voting process, including military and absentee ballots, heavily influenced the decision as justices warned against altering rules on the eve of an election.
- The ruling preserves the current district held by Democratic Rep. Emanuel Cleaver, avoiding the elimination of his seat under the disputed map.
The High Court Intervenes Amid Ongoing Voting
Friday’s Supreme Court decision arrived with no dissents, officially halting attempts to implement a redistricting map that had bounced aggressively through state and federal courts. Justices cited the advanced state of the electoral timeline in their decision. “At this late date, ordering reversion to the 2025 map in the midst of an ongoing election would usher in electoral chaos,” the ruling stated.
The high court emphasized that Missouri’s voting processes had already commenced. “This Court has repeatedly cautioned that ‘lower federal courts should not alter the election rules’ of a state ‘on the eve of an election,'” the justices wrote. “The election is not merely upcoming; it has already started.” Ballots had already gone out to military and overseas voters, with absentee voting kicking off on a Tuesday.
Richard von Glahn, executive director of People Not Politicians Missouri, welcomed the outcome in a public statement. “We are done with corrupt politicians trying to force their map into effect outside the process outlined in the Missouri constitution,” von Glahn said. “We have said from the beginning, people, not politicians will be the final deciders on this DC power grab.”
Mapping the Legal Battle and National Push
The blocked 2025 map was part of a broader nationwide push by Republicans at the urging of President Donald Trump to draw new congressional districts favoring their candidates, which prompted responsive map-drawing by Democrats in states like California. In Missouri, the proposed map would have eliminated one Democratic seat, specifically the one held by Rep. Emanuel Cleaver.
Cleaver expressed relief in a phone call with NBC News on Friday, calling the resolution long-overdue. “It lasted much too long, but it’s over now,” Cleaver said. “The manufactured chaos, you know, has at long last ended, been brought to a final state, and we can move on.” Cleaver noted his campaign must now focus on voter outreach to clear up confusion caused by shifting district boundaries throughout the year.
| Map Version | Status After Supreme Court Ruling | Impact on House Seats |
|---|---|---|
| 2022 Map | Active for the midterm elections | 6 Republican seats, 2 Democratic seats (including Rep. Emanuel Cleaver) |
| 2025 Map | Blocked from implementation | Designed to eliminate one Democratic seat |
Managing State and Federal Court Clashes
The legal friction began when opponents of the 2025 map secured enough signatures to force a state referendum on whether the map should be used. Under Missouri law, subjecting a state law to a referendum suspends it until voters cast their ballots. However, Missouri Secretary of State Denny Hoskins delayed determining the referendum proposal’s legitimacy until just before the primary, ultimately rejecting it and ordering the new map’s use.
The Missouri Supreme Court swiftly countered that decision, ruling that the referendum qualified for the November ballot and that the 2022 map must remain in place in the interim. The state high court held Hoskins in contempt, citing a May opinion warning that the 2025 map carried significant risks for the August primary.
Despite that state-level ruling, Republican nominee Rick Brattin, Rep. Bob Onder, and two voters filed a new federal lawsuit on Sept. 4. U.S. District Judge Stephen Clark initially sided with the new map, leading to an 8th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals ruling on Monday that favored the Republican-drawn map. The Supreme Court’s Tuesday and Friday interventions ultimately overturned that appellate decision, settling the matter as the state proceeds with the 2022 districts.
