Fox2Now · Olivia Johnson · September 8, 2026
KANSAS CITY, Mo. -- A United States Supreme Court justice has declined to have the court get involved in a Missouri Supreme Court ruling that places the power of the state's congressional districts in the hands of voters this November.
On Tuesday, the last day Missouri's general election ballot could be finalized, Justice Brett Kavanaugh declined to stay a unanimous ruling made by the state's highest court last Thursday that sided with a citizen-led petition aiming to place the new "Missouri First" congressional map on the November ballot.
The Missouri Supreme Court's move puts the "Missouri First" map up to a vote in November, while also reinstituting lines drawn in 2022 to select members of Congress.
His decision follows a request from multiple Missouri GOP politicians last Friday, including Attorney General Catherine Hanaway, for an "emergency stay" against the Missouri Supreme Court's ruling.
An emergency stay, if granted, essentially halts a ruling. And, in this case, it could have paused the Missouri Supreme Court's decision, implementing the redrawn 2025 redistricting map for the upcoming election -- a move many opponents argue is motivated by getting more Republicans in Congress this November.
Now that the stay has been denied, voters will use the 2022 and 2024 congressional map for the 2026 November election.
Background
Missouri's new congressional map has been a point of contention among state leaders and residents since it was introduced in August 2025.
Since then, HB 1 has significantly reshaped congressional representation in some of Missouri's traditionally Democratic-leaning areas, including Kansas City, where longtime district boundaries were redrawn to create three separate congressional districts. This change could have shifted the political scale to the right in the upcoming election.
Constitutional basis for redistricting
Many challengers argue the implementation of the new congressional map violates federal law, citing the U.S. Constitution for their reasoning. On the other side, proponents of the new map use similar talking points to argue the exact opposite.
The debate over the constitutionality of the new map stems from the census, which requires the government to count and document the population every 10 years. This census is then used to determine how many seats each state gets in the U.S. House -- a process called apportionment.
But here is the legal distinction: "Apportionment" is not the same as "redistricting."
Apportionment determines how many seats Missouri gets in the U.S. House (currently eight), while redistricting determines how and where those seats are geographically drawn. The complexities of HB 1 are a redistricting issue, not an apportionment issue.
The Constitution does not say congressional district maps can only be redrawn every decade. That law applies only to the census and the apportionment process, not changes in district boundaries.
Because of this, Missouri Republicans initiated a mid-decade redistricting effort and created a new map last year with the hopes of garnering more GOP support in Washington, D.C.
Petitions and legal battles against the new map
Republican state leaders have since faced numerous legal challenges, with the largest obstacles presented by the political advocacy group "People Not Politicians."
People Not Politicians gathered more than 300,000 signatures on a citizen-led petition opposing the new map last year.
The goal of the petition is to put a referendum on the November ballot, giving Missouri voters the power to vote for or against the map. Approval means anything involving HB 1 would legally have to be put on pause until the general election.
In simpler terms, through the lens of Missouri's redistricting debacle, the new congressional map would not be recognized under state law until votes are cast on Nov. 3.
Hoskins rules against the petition
People Not Politicians presented the signatures to the state in December 2025. It wasn't until Aug. 4, the last day a ruling could be made on the petition, that Secretary of State Hoskins rejected the referendum, determining it was legally insufficient.
This last-minute ruling thus shaped the nature of the primary ballot and allowed for the new congressional map to be used. And ever since, a legal battle has ensued, including a lawsuit directed against Hoskins and his ruling.
A Cole County judge was assigned to review the lawsuit and subsequently sided with Hoskins, declaring his decision was correct. But the individual who filed the lawsuit followed up with an appeal, sending the issue up to the Missouri Supreme Court.
The Missouri Supreme Court then turned around and rejected the Cole County judge's ruling. The court determined the original petition was legally sufficient, and Hoskins' decision was incorrect.
The new congressional map was essentially deemed invalid when the August primaries took place; therefore, the state court determined it could not be used in the November general election.
Another appeal
In response, another appeal was thrown into the mix, this time by Missouri Attorney General Catherine Hanaway. On Friday, Hanaway issued the aforementioned emergency stay, calling the Missouri Supreme Court's decision "catastrophic."
"We look forward to the court's prompt review of this critical matter," she said, adding that timely and lawful congressional elections hang in the balance.
Justice Kavanaugh gave People Not Politicians the chance to respond by noon Monday.
The petitioners argued that the Missouri Supreme Court's ruling followed the state law, and the pressure of a looming general election does not change how or when those laws are applied.
They also accuse Hoskins of waiting until "the last possible day-and only after he had implemented HB 1 in the congressional primary-to object to the referendum."
Support for Missouri lawmakers
In the wake of the emergency stay and the petitioners' filing, 20 majority-red states expressed their support for Hoskins and the Missouri GOP.
The lawmakers argued that it is too late in the election process to change the maps. They added that the shift could create serious problems and confuse voters at the polls; voters who based their decisions in the August primaries on the new congressional map.
Now, on the final day of the November ballot filing deadline, Justice Kavanaugh has denied the stay, upholding the Missouri Supreme Court's ruling -- a decision that will shape the immediate future of the state's districts, representatives and laws.
This is a developing story. Stay tuned to FOX4 News for the latest updates and information.