By Jason Hancock
The U.S. Supreme Court on Thursday blocked a federal judge’s order requiring Missouri to use a gerrymandered congressional map in November, putting the state back on course to conduct the election using districts drawn in 2022.
In a one-page order, the court granted an emergency request from a political action committee called People Not Politicians and its executive director, Richard von Glahn, to stay a temporary restraining order issued Tuesday by Chief U.S. District Judge Stephen Clark in St. Louis.
Justice Brett Kavanaugh, who handles emergency matters from Missouri, referred the request to the full court. The unsigned order did not disclose the vote or explain the court’s reasoning, and no justice publicly dissented.
After the Supreme Court ruling, Secretary of State Denny Hoskins released a statement saying his office is “directing local election authorities to use the 2022 congressional map.” Attorney General Catherine Hanaway quickly followed suit.
Thursday’s ruling is the latest turn in a legal fight that has bounced between the Missouri Supreme Court, a federal district judge, the 8th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals and the U.S. Supreme Court in the span of a week.
Its immediate effect is to revive a unanimous Missouri Supreme Court ruling from Sept. 3 that found the gerrymandered 2025 congressional map never took effect because it was suspended by a valid referendum petition.
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