The Missouri Supreme Court has approved a redistricting map drawn by Republicans, set to impact the upcoming midterms. This move grants the GOP victories in two significant redistricting lawsuits.
The court determined that the newly proposed mapâcrafted by Republican legislators to dismantle a Democratic stronghold in the Kansas City area and shift the congressional balance from 6-2 to a 7-1 Republican advantageâcomplies with the state’s constitutional requirements for redistricting. Additionally, the court rejected Democratic efforts to initiate a referendum on the map, stating that filing a petition does not automatically halt the map’s implementation.
These rulings represent a significant setback for Democrats, who had sought judicial intervention to block the GOP-favored redistricting, and diminish the likelihood of opponents preventing the new map from being used in the November elections.
This development is part of a broader trend of court victories for Republicans regarding redistricting. Recently, the Supreme Court weakened the Voting Rights Act, allowing several GOP-controlled states in the South to advance new congressional maps ahead of the midterms. Moreover, Virginia’s Supreme Court recently nullified a referendum-approved map that favored Democrats in four districts.
James Blair, involved in President Donald Trump’s political activities, expressed approval of these court outcomes, describing them as a decisive defeat for Democratic efforts.
âLocked in Missouri,â he posted on social media.
The Missouri court stood by lower court decisions, dismissing an argument from Democratic-aligned National Redistricting Foundation (NRF) lawyers who claimed the GOP’s map breached a constitutional requirement for compact congressional districts in Missouri.
NRF’s executive director, Marina Jenkins, criticized the court for allegedly ignoring Democratic arguments and insinuated that the court’s decision was predetermined.
“With this decision, the Missouri Supreme Court has shown Missourians the lack of seriousness with which it takes cases that pertain to protecting their right to voteâa complete and dangerous abdication of the judiciaryâs role,” she stated.
In another case, the court denied Democrats’ argument that the map should be paused while the Missouri Secretary of State reviews the referendum petition, to uphold citizens’ constitutional rights to petition for referenda before laws are enacted.
Despite the pending status of the Democratsâ referendum petition, the court’s decision diminishes the chances of halting or overturning the map before November. Secretary of State Denny Hoskins, a Republican, has until late July to decide if the referendum is valid and should be presented to voters.
If validated, state law mandates the suspension of any law under voter consideration.
However, Hoskins’ decision could occur just before the August 4 primaries. Republicans believe that such timing would make it difficult to disrupt the primary, effectively implementing the 7-1 map while voters decide whether to overturn it.
People Not Politicians, the Democratic group behind the referendum campaign, claims to have gathered enough valid signatures for a vote. Richard von Glahn, the group’s executive director, urged Hoskins to promptly decide on the referendum.
“Unnecessary delays by politicians do not change this fact. If he continues to delay, then he is moving forward under a map that has been suspended by the people,” he commented.
