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Missouri Supreme Court Pauses GOP Gerrymander, Likely Netting Democrats 1 House Seat
Confirmed
In Short: The Missouri Supreme Court has blocked the state's new congressional map, a blow to Republicans and a win for Democrats.
The Missouri Supreme Court ruled Thursday that the state’s redrawn congressional map cannot be used in this year’s midterm elections, a decision that could net Democrats one House seat in November.
The court ruled that a referendum on whether the state can use the map going forward must be included on the November ballot, meaning Missouri’s fall elections will take place under its previous district lines.
The move comes after a year of legal battles over which map to use, with Republicans hoping the changes would help them win seven of Missouri’s eight House seats in the November midterm elections.
Missouri Attorney General Catherine Hanaway said in a social media post she will ask the U.S. Supreme Court to weigh in on the decision, while Richard von Glahn, executive director of the group that organized the referendum, said, 'This is what democracy looks like, the people of Missouri demanded a voice, and the court just confirmed what we’ve been saying all along.
The change could affect more than 1 million voters, or nearly one-fourth of Missouri’s electorate, and Republicans hoped the new map would help them win seven of Missouri’s eight House seats in the November midterm elections.
Democrats, however, now have a better chance of holding onto their two seats, with the Supreme Court’s decision requiring the use of the 2022 map, which keeps Emanuel Cleaver’s district more favorable to Democrats.
The decision also means that Missouri’s elections will now take place under the previous district lines, which could make the state’s House seats more competitive.
What's confirmed
- The Missouri Supreme Court ruled Thursday that the state’s redrawn congressional map cannot be used in this year’s midterm elections, a decision that could net Democrats one House seat in November.
- The court ruled that a referendum on whether the state can use the map going forward must be included on the November ballot, meaning Missouri’s fall elections will take place under its previous district lines.
- The move comes after a year of legal battles over which map to use, with Republicans hoping the changes would help them win seven of Missouri’s eight House seats in the November midterm elections.
- Missouri Attorney General Catherine Hanaway said in a social media post she will ask the U.S. Supreme Court to weigh in on the decision, while Richard von Glahn, executive director of the group that organized the referendum, said, 'This is what democracy looks like, the people of Missouri demanded a voice, and the court just confirmed what we’ve been saying all along.
- The change could affect more than 1 million voters, or nearly one-fourth of Missouri’s electorate, and Republicans hoped the new map would help them win seven of Missouri’s eight House seats in the November midterm elections.
- Democrats, however, now have a better chance of holding onto their two seats, with the Supreme Court’s decision requiring the use of the 2022 map, which keeps Emanuel Cleaver’s district more favorable to Democrats.
- The decision also means that Missouri’s elections will now take place under the previous district lines, which could make the state’s House seats more competitive.
What's still developing
- “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 wrote.
- “This victory reaches beyond Missouri. In a year when map-drawing has become a national weapon, courts across the country are watching what happens here. A Missouri win for the referendum is a signal that the people still hold the power,” von Glahn said in a statement.
- The court ruled unanimously on Thursday that a referendum petition organized by Democrats to put the new congressional maps to a vote was incorrectly deemed insufficient by Republican Secretary of State Denny Hoskins, and ordered that the gerrymandered map be put to a vote in the fall.
- The Supreme Court’s decision gutting the Voting Rights Act, coupled with the Virginia Supreme Court striking down Democrats’ voter-approved gerrymander there, gave Republicans an edge of up to 10 seats.
- A major midterm shakeup unfolds as the Missouri Supreme Court blocks the state's new congressional map despite its use in primaries where over 1.2 million citizens voted.
- Missouri Gov. Mike Kehoe joins 'Fox & Friends' to discuss the ruling, which President Trump called a 'dark day.' Republicans suffered a fresh blow in Missouri after the Supreme Court blocked a congressional map that could have helped the GOP gain another House seat in November.
- The Supreme Court did not explain its reasoning in the brief order.
- But those boundaries will change before the November election, when Missouri is expected to return to its 2022 map.