{"id":8993,"date":"2026-03-23T13:07:58","date_gmt":"2026-03-23T18:07:58","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/westplexnews.com\/index.php\/2026\/03\/23\/missouri-referendum-campaign-says-it-has-enough-signatures-to-challenge-gerrymandered-map\/"},"modified":"2026-03-23T13:07:58","modified_gmt":"2026-03-23T18:07:58","slug":"missouri-referendum-campaign-says-it-has-enough-signatures-to-challenge-gerrymandered-map","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/westplexnews.com\/index.php\/2026\/03\/23\/missouri-referendum-campaign-says-it-has-enough-signatures-to-challenge-gerrymandered-map\/","title":{"rendered":"Missouri referendum campaign says it has enough signatures to challenge gerrymandered map"},"content":{"rendered":"
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\n

Missouri Capitol Police officers conduct security checks Dec. 9 on the 691 boxes of petitions filed to force a referendum on the gerrymandered Congressional district map passed by lawmakers in September. Of the 27 times a referendum has been placed on the Missouri ballot, voters have rejected the General Assembly\u2019s actions all but twice (Rudi Keller\/Missouri Independent).<\/p>\n<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Backers of a proposed referendum on <\/span>Missouri\u2019s gerrymandered congressional plan<\/span><\/a> believe they have met the minimum number of signatures needed to make the November\u2019s ballot.<\/span><\/p>\n

Updated data, posted Monday morning by <\/span>People Not Politicians<\/span><\/a>, the political action committee that organized a referendum petition drive, shows that the petition has at least 129% of the required signatures in the 1st, 2nd, 3rd, 4th and 5th districts. The last district needed to qualify for the ballot was southwest Missouri\u2019s 7th District and 102% of the signatures needed are valid, with more than 6,000 signatures left to be checked.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cThis is what we have known to be true all along,\u201d said Richard von Glahn, director of People Not Politicians. \u201cWe clearly have enough signatures.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

The updated data, obtained from Secretary of State Denny Hoskins\u2019 office via a Sunshine Law request, arrived Monday morning, von Glahn said, just days after a Cole County judge ordered revisions last week to the ballot summary for the referendum.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

In the decision delivered Friday, Circuit Judge Brian Stumpe wrote that he <\/span>agreed with Hoskins<\/span><\/a> that two phrases should be removed from the summary, originally prepared by Hoskins, as prejudicial and unfair.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Stumpe also identified a third phrase that he deleted for the same reason.<\/span><\/p>\n

The rest of the description, describing the geographic features, is neutral and fair, Stumpe wrote, and will be retained.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cIt is neither inaccurate nor unfair to describe the map enacted by (lawmakers) in the summary statement for (the referendum),\u201d Stumpe wrote.<\/span><\/p>\n

In the deleted phrases, Stumpe removed language that described the map <\/span>adopted in 2022<\/span><\/a> as the \u201cexisting gerrymandered\u201d plan that \u201cprotects incumbent politicians.\u201d Both phrases were prejudicial, Hoskins had admitted in court.<\/span><\/p>\n

The third phrase, that the new map \u201cbetter reflects statewide voting patterns,\u201d is far too general, Stumpe wrote.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cWhile Missourians may, as a whole, generally vote in a particular pattern, it is deceptive because it is not an accurate statement when voting patterns are looked at in sheer numbers, not just who gets elected,\u201d Stumpe wrote.<\/span><\/p>\n

The remaining language, on compactness and community political power, is acceptable, Stumpe wrote.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cThe court finds that most of the remainder of the secretary\u2019s summary statement captures the central features of the referred measure and explains the legal and probable consequences of those features using neutral, fair language,\u201d he wrote.<\/span><\/p>\n

The new ballot language Stumpe ordered would be:<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cDo the people of the state of Missouri approve the act of the General Assembly entitled \u2018House Bill No. 1 (2025 Second Extraordinary Session),\u2019 which repeals Missouri\u2019s congressional plan, and replaces it with new congressional boundaries that keep more cities and counties intact and are more compact?\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

People Not Politicians will decide Monday afternoon whether to appeal the ruling on the ballot summary, von Glahn said.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Stumpe\u2019s decision settles, at least at the trial court level, one of three major outstanding legal battles surrounding the referendum on the revised congressional district map forced through the General Assembly last year under <\/span>pressure from President Donald Trump<\/span><\/a>.<\/span><\/p>\n

All three cases involve the push for a referendum on the map, organized by a political action committee called People Not Politicians. The campaign submitted just over 300,000 signatures to Hoskins on Dec. 9 and in one pending case, Cole County Circuit Judge Christopher Limbaugh is considering whether to order Hoskins to <\/span>check approximately 100,000 signatures <\/span><\/a>collected before he approved the petition form on Oct. 14. He heard arguments again last week, but has not changed his December ruling that put a decision on hold pending the outcome of the verification process.<\/span><\/p>\n

Stumpe is also the judge in the third case, asking him to declare that the map <\/span>approved by lawmakers in 2022<\/span><\/a> is the one in effect for this year\u2019s elections. His ballot language, People Not Politicians argues, foreshadows his decision on which map is in effect.<\/span><\/p>\n

Phrasing that states the map passed last year would replace the current plan with a new one \u201cmeans the boundaries being proposed are not currently in effect,\u201d von Glahn said.<\/span><\/p>\n

\"\"
U.S. Rep. Emanuel Cleaver, D-Kansas City, filing for re-election Feb. 24 in the 5th Congressional District. The district is at the center of a fight over a gerrymandered map intended to flip the district to Republicans. (Rudi Keller\/Missouri Independent)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

The GOP goal for the map passed last year is to flip the 5th Congressional District, currently held by U.S. Rep. Emanuel Cleaver, a Kansas City Democrat. The GOP hopes to win seven of the state\u2019s eight congressional seats \u2014 they currently hold six \u2014 to help preserve the slim Republican majority in the U.S. House of Representatives.<\/span><\/p>\n

Six <\/span>Republicans<\/span><\/a> have filed for the GOP nomination, while <\/span>Cleaver has filed for reelection<\/span><\/a> to a 13th term.<\/span><\/p>\n

Under the Missouri Constitution, a law challenged by a referendum <\/span>does not go into effect<\/span><\/a> until a vote is held. Stumpe <\/span>heard arguments Feb. 9<\/span><\/a> on whether that language applies to referendums on redistricting and has not ruled.<\/span><\/p>\n

Hoskins and Republican Attorney General Catherine Hanaway contend the map approved last year will be used for this year\u2019s elections unless the courts order otherwise.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cThere are enough signatures for a referendum. Which means (last year\u2019s map) is paused,\u201d von Glahn said. \u201cI shouldn\u2019t need a court order for an elected official to do a job that they swore an oath to do. But if that is needed, that will happen.\u201d<\/span><\/p>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Missouri Capitol Police officers conduct security checks Dec. 9 on the 691 boxes of petitions filed to force a referendum on the gerrymandered Congressional district map passed by lawmakers in September. Of the 27 times a referendum has been placed on the Missouri ballot, voters have rejected the General Assembly\u2019s actions all but twice (Rudi…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":8994,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_kadence_starter_templates_imported_post":false,"_kad_post_transparent":"","_kad_post_title":"","_kad_post_layout":"","_kad_post_sidebar_id":"","_kad_post_content_style":"","_kad_post_vertical_padding":"","_kad_post_feature":"","_kad_post_feature_position":"","_kad_post_header":false,"_kad_post_footer":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-8993","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-uncategorized"],"yoast_head":"\nMissouri referendum campaign says it has enough signatures to challenge gerrymandered map - WestplexNews.com<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/westplexnews.com\/index.php\/2026\/03\/23\/missouri-referendum-campaign-says-it-has-enough-signatures-to-challenge-gerrymandered-map\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Missouri referendum campaign says it has enough signatures to challenge gerrymandered map - WestplexNews.com\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Missouri Capitol Police officers conduct security checks Dec. 9 on the 691 boxes of petitions filed to force a referendum on the gerrymandered Congressional district map passed by lawmakers in September. 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