JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. (AP) — Competing court orders issued eight weeks before the November elections have created uncertainty regarding Missouri's congressional map. A federal judge temporarily blocked the state from using its previous congressional districts, shortly after the U.S. Supreme Court upheld a Missouri Supreme Court decision mandating the use of the old districts instead of new ones supported by President Donald Trump.
The Missouri Supreme Court ruled last week that the new map could not be implemented due to a petition signed by thousands of citizens requesting a statewide vote on the redistricting plan. The U.S. Supreme Court declined to hear an appeal from Missouri's Republican attorney general, maintaining the injunction from the state’s top court. However, U.S. District Judge Stephen Clark, appointed by Trump, issued a temporary restraining order allowing the use of the new districts favored by Republicans.
Opponents of the new districts have filed an appeal against Clark's order to the 8th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals. The new congressional districts were utilized in the August primary, with certified winners, but the uncertainty regarding which districts will be used in the general election remains.
Missouri Attorney General Catherine Hanaway stated that the state is prepared to comply with Clark's order, which she claims mandates the use of the new congressional districts. Republican Secretary of State Denny Hoskins described the federal court order as a victory, asserting that it prevents a constitutional crisis and has informed local election officials of the requirement to use the new districts.
Conversely, an attorney for People Not Politicians, the group that initiated the referendum petition, emphasized that the Missouri Supreme Court's order against the new map is still in effect. The group's leader has requested the state Supreme Court to hold Hoskins in contempt for attempting to use the new map, with arguments scheduled for Thursday.
Hanaway has argued that switching districts between the primary and general elections would violate federal rights and cause voter confusion. In his written order, Clark noted that using different maps for the general election could disrupt the fairness of Missouri's congressional elections and lead to widespread voter confusion.
U.S. Supreme Court Justice Brett Kavanaugh, responsible for cases from Missouri, did not provide a rationale for declining to take up the case. Missouri law set a Tuesday deadline for changes to candidates or issues on the November ballot, but determining which ballots voters will receive may take longer. Federal law requires absentee ballots to be mailed to overseas citizens and military members by September 19.
Currently, Missouri's U.S. House delegation consists of six Republicans and two Democrats, elected under districts approved by Republican state officials in 2022. Following Trump's urging, Missouri Governor Mike Kehoe convened a special legislative session last year to redraw congressional boundaries favoring Republicans ahead of the midterms.
The revised map aimed to alter the 5th Congressional District, represented by Democratic Rep. Emanuel Cleaver of Kansas City, by reallocating parts of Kansas City to neighboring Republican-held districts and extending Cleaver's district into rural Republican areas. An estimated 59% of the district's voters were new under the revised map.
Cleaver, unopposed in the Democratic primary, expressed confidence that the old districts would ultimately be used. State Senator Rick Brattin, who won the Republican primary in the altered district, praised Clark's decision while continuing his campaign.
On the same day as the primary, Hoskins rejected a petition with thousands of signatures seeking a referendum on the map, stating that Missouri's Constitution does not permit a referendum on congressional redistricting. A lower court agreed, but the state Supreme Court reversed Hoskins' decision, stating that the new districts were retroactively frozen when the petition signatures were submitted.
The Missouri Constitution does not explicitly mention referendums for congressional redistricting, but the state Supreme Court ruled that a provision allowing referendums on "any act" of the Legislature includes congressional redistricting legislation. Missouri was the second Republican-led state to respond to Trump's call for redistricting, with several other states following suit. Republicans aimed to gain as many as 16 additional seats from new House maps enacted in eight states, while Democrats hoped to secure up to six additional seats from new districts in California and Utah.
The effectiveness of the redistricting for Republicans remains uncertain, as historically, the president's party has lost congressional seats in midterm elections, and Trump's low approval ratings may pose additional challenges for Republican candidates.