Supreme Court Again Blocks Missouri’s GOP-Friendly Congressional Map

The U.S. Supreme Court on Sept. 10 put a federal judge’s order on hold that would have forced Missouri to use a new Republican-drawn congressional map in November, keeping the 2022 map in place for the midterm elections.

The decision took the form of an unsigned order. The order was not explained. No justices dissented.

The stay puts the lower court order on hold while the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit considers the case.

On Sept. 3, a unanimous Missouri Supreme Court barred use of the 2025 congressional map in the Nov. 3 midterms. President Donald Trump supported the map.

The state’s high court held that the 2025 map must first be approved by voters in a November referendum before it can take effect. The court ordered that the referendum question be placed on the Nov. 3 ballot.

The state court said the 2025 map approved by the state Legislature “is not the law and has never been the law.”

“There is only one valid congressional redistricting in effect—the congressional redistricting the General Assembly established in 2022,” the court said.

Opponents of the 2025 map late on Sept. 9 had asked the U.S. Supreme Court to review U.S. District Judge Stephen R. Clark’s Sept. 8 order that allowed the state to hold the general elections on Nov. 3 using the map, which favors Republicans.

The 2022 map, drawn by the Legislature after the 2020 Census, was designed to give Republicans a 6–2 edge. The 2025 map, drawn as part of a mid-decade redistricting, was designed to give them a 7–1 advantage.

This is a developing story and will be updated.