Jefferson City, Missouri - June 9, 2026

Missouri Supreme Court Upholds Republican-Backed Congressional Map in Unanimous Ruling

The Missouri Supreme Court delivered a significant victory to Republican leaders Tuesday by upholding the state’s new congressional map, allowing GOP-drawn boundaries to remain in effect while legal challenges continue.

In a pair of unanimous decisions, the court ruled that the “Missouri First Map” passed by Republican lawmakers last year can stay in place despite a referendum effort backed by more than 300,000 signatures. The rulings rejected claims by the ACLU and Democratic-aligned groups that the referendum automatically suspended the map upon submission of petitions.

The map was specifically crafted to flip one of Missouri’s two Democratic-held congressional seats and create a 7-1 Republican advantage in the state’s delegation. Top Republican officials have already signaled they may pursue an even more aggressive redraw that could eliminate the final Democratic seat and produce an 8-0 map.

“I would love to see an 8-0 map,” Missouri Secretary of State Denny Hoskins said following the rulings. “We have racial gerrymandering right now in St. Louis in Congressional District 1. The U.S. Supreme Court ruled that there is no more racial gerrymandering.”

The court’s decisions centered on the Missouri Constitution’s lack of any provision for automatic suspension of a law simply because referendum petitions were filed. Judge Ginger Gooch wrote that if the constitution’s drafters had intended automatic suspension, they would have explicitly stated so.

The court also upheld lower court findings that the map meets constitutional compactness requirements. Republicans maintain the new boundaries reflect legitimate political and geographic considerations, particularly in how Kansas City was divided among three congressional districts.

The Missouri rulings come amid a broader redistricting offensive by Republican-led states following the U.S. Supreme Court’s recent 6-3 decision in Louisiana v. Callais. That ruling substantially narrowed the standards previously used to justify majority-minority districts under the Voting Rights Act, limiting what Justice Samuel Alito described as the use of racial districting to disguise partisan objectives.

GOP leaders in Texas, Florida, Tennessee, Alabama, Georgia, and Missouri have moved quickly to redraw maps in response to the ruling. They argue the decision frees states from being forced to preserve racially engineered districts that often prioritize race over traditional redistricting principles.

Democrats and activist groups have filed lawsuits accusing Republicans of attempting to reduce minority representation and lock in partisan advantages ahead of the 2026 midterms. In Missouri, the current map already places one Democratic seat at serious risk, while open discussion of an 8-0 map has intensified the political stakes.

For now, the Missouri Supreme Court’s ruling keeps the Republican-backed map in place as election officials continue verifying referendum signatures. The decision strengthens the GOP position in the ongoing national battle over congressional boundaries and provides additional momentum for similar efforts in other Republican-controlled states.