{"id":9025,"date":"2026-03-27T14:09:29","date_gmt":"2026-03-27T19:09:29","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/westplexnews.com\/index.php\/2026\/03\/27\/judge-keeps-missouris-new-congressional-map-in-effect-despite-referendum-campaign\/"},"modified":"2026-03-27T14:09:29","modified_gmt":"2026-03-27T19:09:29","slug":"judge-keeps-missouris-new-congressional-map-in-effect-despite-referendum-campaign","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/westplexnews.com\/index.php\/2026\/03\/27\/judge-keeps-missouris-new-congressional-map-in-effect-despite-referendum-campaign\/","title":{"rendered":"Judge keeps Missouri\u2019s new congressional map in effect despite referendum campaign"},"content":{"rendered":"
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Cole County Circuit Court Judge Brian Stumpe ruled Friday that Missouri’s gerrymandered congressional district map will be in effect until signature verification is complete. (Annelise Hanshaw\/Missouri Independent).<\/p>\n<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Submitting signatures to force a referendum on a state law is not enough to suspend a new state law, a Cole County judge <\/span>ruled Friday<\/span><\/a> in a decision that means Missouri\u2019s <\/span>gerrymandered congressional map<\/span><\/a> is in effect.<\/span><\/p>\n

The referendum petition submitted by the political action committee People Not Politicians could still put the law on hold until a November vote, Circuit Judge Brian Stumpe ruled, but not until the signature verification process is complete.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cThe constitutional threshold would be rendered meaningless if automatic suspension occurred based on mere physical delivery of petition boxes, regardless of actual signature sufficiency,\u201d Stumpe wrote in his 18-page ruling.<\/span><\/p>\n

Stumpe\u2019s decision is the latest legal defeat for opponents of the congressional district map passed in a special session last year. Previous rulings have held that Gov. Mike Kehoe had authority to <\/span>call lawmakers into session<\/span><\/a>, that the Legislature has the power to revise congressional district lines <\/span>at any time<\/span><\/a> and that the maps <\/span>pass constitutional muster<\/span><\/a> in the way they are drawn.<\/span><\/p>\n

In the case decided Friday, the ACLU of Missouri asked Stumpe to rule that the submission of 300,000 signatures on Dec. 9 triggered a <\/span>provision of the Missouri Constitution<\/span><\/a> that states laws subject to referendums \u201cshall take effect when approved by a majority of the votes cast thereon, and not otherwise.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

The law enacting the new districts was set to go into effect Dec. 11 and Secretary of State Denny Hoskins said that until the signatures were checked, the constitutional provision did not apply.<\/span><\/p>\n

In a statement issued Friday, the ACLU of Missouri vowed to appeal the decision.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cThis order defies over a century of judicial precedent while rendering Missourians\u2019 constitutional right to the referendum process second to the will of politicians,\u201d the statement read. \u201cThe ACLU of Missouri is committed to our state constitution\u2019s founding principle that all power is derived from the people, not loaned from the government.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

In all past referendums, going back more than 100 years, submission of signatures has been enough to suspend the law.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

The last time Missourians petitioned successfully for a referendum was 2017, when legislators passed a bill implementing the anti-union right to work law. When signatures were submitted, then-Secretary of State Jay Ashcroft, a Republican. issued a statement that the law would not take effect until the signatures had been checked.<\/span><\/p>\n

A 1914 ruling cited by plaintiffs doesn\u2019t apply because there was no signature verification process required at that time, Stumpe noted in his ruling.<\/span><\/p>\n

In a statement, Hoskins praised the ruling.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cI appreciate the court\u2019s clarity and leadership in confirming that the Missouri FIRST Map remains in effect,\u201d Hoskins said. \u201cClear guidance helps ensure Missouri\u2019s election processes continue to move forward in an orderly, transparent, and lawful manner.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

Attorney General Catherine Hanaway, in a social media post<\/a>, also lauded the ruling.<\/p>\n

\u201cA win on all counts,\u201d she wrote. \u201cThe Missouri FIRST Map remains in effect.\u201d<\/p>\n

The ruling does not mean there won\u2019t be a vote on the map if the referendum petition has enough signatures, said Marc Ellinger, the Republican attorney who represented Put Missouri First,\u00a0 the political action committee organized to promote the map. But it likely means the congressional election will use the map passed last year because it will be too late to change it, he said.<\/p>\n

Stumpe\u2019s ruling mirrors the position Ellinger took as an intervenor in the case<\/p>\n

\u201cWe made all these arguments in court,\u201d Ellinger said. \u201cH<\/span>e ruled across the board that we were correct on all of them.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/p>\n

In his decision, Stumpe ruled that the individual plaintiffs represented by the ACLU did not have standing, or the right to sue, over Hoskins\u2019 decision. They have no interest in the petition beyond signing it and wanting to see it on the ballot, he noted.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe action of signing a petition, in and of itself, does not create a sufficient interest for\u00a0 the purpose of standing,\u201d Stumpe wrote.<\/span><\/p>\n

There are other legal standards that were not met by the plaintiffs, Stumpe wrote. The issue was not ready for the courts, he wrote, because Hoskins has not ruled on whether there are or are not enough signatures to make the ballot.<\/span><\/p>\n

Under state law, local election authorities have until July 28 to finish checking the signatures and Hoskins has a week after that deadline to determine if the petition has enough signatures to make the ballot. The primary election this year is Aug. 4, but ballots must be finalized by June 9.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Stumpe wrote that he was being asked to rule on a political question outside the court\u2019s authority.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cPlaintiffs seek to bypass the entire administrative process and obtain a premature judicial declaration before the administrative process has run its course,\u201d Stumpe wrote.<\/span><\/p>\n

Signature verification is an important check to prevent bogus referendum petitions, Stumpe wrote.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cWithout verification requirements, any group could suspend legislation merely by submitting boxes of invalid signatures, signatures of unregistered voters, forged names or other fraudulent submissions,\u201d he wrote.<\/span><\/p>\n

Under pressure from President Donald Trump Missouri Republicans forced the map to passage by <\/span>changing state Senate rules<\/span><\/a> and shutting off debate to prevent a filibuster. The map puts a target on U.S. Rep. Emanuel Cleaver, a Kansas City Democrat, by expanding his 5th Congressional District from its boundaries in Jackson and Clay counties to take in areas along the Missouri River to Columbia.<\/span><\/p>\n

So far, six Republicans have filed for the nomination to oppose Cleaver. If he is defeated and there are no changes in the party controlling other districts, Missouri would be represented in the U.S. House by seven Republicans and one Democrat.<\/span><\/p>\n

Stumpe\u2019s ruling could trigger a rush of new filings before Tuesday, the deadline for seeking office by filing with an established political party. The final days of filing are already going to be watched closely because 6th District U.S. Rep. Sam Graves, a Republican from Tarkio, decided this week he <\/span>would not run for a 14th term<\/span><\/a>.<\/span><\/p>\n

People Not Politicians is not a party to the case decided Friday. In a statement, they said the decision is not the final word on whether the new map will be used this year.<\/span><\/p>\n

Using the Missouri Sunshine Law, People Not Politicians has monitored the signature verification process and local election authorities have reported <\/span>enough signatures are valid<\/span><\/a> \u2014 equal to 5% of the vote for governor in 2024 in six of the state\u2019s eight districts \u2014 to make the ballot.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cMore than 305,000 Missourians have already demanded a vote, the Constitution is on the side of voters, and no single ruling can override the right of the people to decide their own representation, Richard von Glahn, executive director of People Not Politicians, said in a prepared statement. \u201cThis fight is far from over, and voters will ultimately have the final say.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

This article was updated at 3;15 p.m. March 27 to include a statement from Attorney General Catherine Hanaway and Republican attorney Marc Ellinger.<\/em><\/p>\n

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