Missouri court blocks new congressional map

The Missouri Supreme Court on Thursday unanimously blocked the state from using a Republican-drawn congressional map for the November 2026 general election, ordering that the previous district boundaries remain in effect. The ruling mandates that voters will decide the fate of the new map through a referendum on the November 3 ballot. The state's highest court found that a referendum petition filed by the group People Not Politicians was legal, sufficient, and timely. The justices determined that the new map, passed by the Republican-led legislature in September 2025, did not go into effect and cannot be used unless approved by voters. Consequently, the congressional map adopted after the 2020 census, which features six Republican-leaning districts and two Democratic-leaning districts, will remain in full force for the upcoming election. The decision stems from a legal battle over the new districts, which were drawn with the aim of increasing Republican partisan advantage.