Missouri Supreme Court
JEFFERSON CITY — The Missouri Supreme Court heard arguments Tuesday in multiple legal challenges surrounding the state’s revised congressional district map, as supporters of the plan argued the map was lawfully enacted and should remain in place for the 2026 election cycle.
In a statement issued after oral arguments, the political group Put Missouri First said the legal disputes “underscore what both the law and the facts have made clear from the beginning” and maintained that the congressional map “was lawfully enacted, properly implemented and remains fully in effect for the 2026 election cycle.”
The organization characterized the lawsuits challenging the map as politically motivated and predicted the court would ultimately reject the claims.
“We anticipate another decisive victory for the rule of law and the court to issue a clear rejection of these baseless political challenges to confirm what we’ve said all along: the Missouri First map is in effect and remains the law of the land,” the group said.
The court is considering several issues tied to the map approved by Missouri lawmakers during a 2025 special session.
One set of challenges argues the districts violate constitutional requirements for compactness, while another dispute centers on whether referendum petitions filed against the measure should have prevented the law from taking effect pending a statewide vote.
Put Missouri First argued that opponents of the map continue to ignore “longstanding election law principles” and asserted that “unverified referendum petitions cannot automatically freeze duly enacted laws passed by the people’s elected representatives.”
The group also pointed to earlier court rulings that upheld lawmakers’ authority to redraw congressional districts outside the normal decennial census process.
In March, the Missouri Supreme Court ruled 4-3 that the state constitution does not prohibit mid-decade congressional redistricting, allowing the legislature’s revised map to stand.
According to Put Missouri First, “multiple courts have now affirmed the state’s position,” including prior rulings recognizing the legislature’s constitutional authority to redraw districts.
Opponents of the map have argued that the revised districts improperly divide communities and fail to meet constitutional compactness standards.
Lawsuits challenging the plan specifically cite the splitting of the Kansas City area into multiple congressional districts.
Put Missouri First rejected those claims in its statement, saying “claims attacking the map’s compactness fall apart under the actual evidence presented to the court,” and arguing the revised districts are “more compact and split fewer counties and cities than the prior map.”
Missouri lawmakers approved the revised map after a special legislative session in 2025, with supporters arguing the changes were constitutionally permissible and opponents describing the effort as partisan gerrymandering.
Put Missouri First said Missourians “deserve certainty heading into the 2026 election cycle, not endless lawsuits designed to overturn legitimate legislative outcomes through the courts after failing in the political process.”
The Missouri Supreme Court has not yet issued a ruling in the latest cases.
