by Emmitt Barry, Worthy News Washington D.C. Bureau Chief
(Worthy News) – The U.S. Supreme Court has again blocked Missouri from using a Republican-backed congressional map in the November midterm elections, marking the third time the justices have intervened in the closely watched redistricting battle.
In an unsigned ruling Friday, the Supreme Court said Missouri must conduct the 2026 congressional election using the map enacted in 2022 rather than a new map approved by the Republican-controlled legislature in 2025. The decision halted lower federal court rulings that had sought to revive the newer districts.
The 2025 map, backed by President Donald Trump and Missouri Republicans, substantially reshaped Democratic Rep. Emanuel Cleaver’s Kansas City-based 5th Congressional District. Republicans had hoped the new boundaries could help them capture seven of Missouri’s eight U.S. House seats, up from the six they currently hold.
The dispute centers on a referendum petition challenging the 2025 map. Missouri’s Supreme Court ruled earlier this month that enough voter signatures had been submitted to trigger a statewide referendum and that, under state law, the new map cannot take effect unless voters approve it.
The U.S. Supreme Court agreed that state law controls the immediate dispute, declaring that “the 2022 map—not the 2025 map—must be used in the 2026 congressional election.”
The ruling comes just weeks before the Nov. 3 midterms, when control of the narrowly divided U.S. House will be at stake.
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