The ACLU of Missouri is suing the state and the Secretary of State over the implementation of the new congressional redistricting map.
The organization is requesting the courts suspend the map and prevent election authorities and the Secretary of State from using it until Missourians approve or reject it through the referendum process.
In September, Missouri lawmakers passed a mid-decade redistricting map aimed at drawing Democrat Emanuel Cleaver out of a seat. That effort to add a Republican congressional seat, done at the behest of the Trump administration, was signed into law by Gov. Mike Kehoe.
However, the group People Not Politicians in early December submitted more than 305,000 signatures of Missouri voters to place the map up for a statewide vote.
Tori Schafer, Director of Policy and Campaigns for the ACLU of Missouri, said when those signatures were turned in, the map should have been put on hold.
“Missouri has more than 100 years of history that says, ‘When the people of Missouri are using the right to referendum, that bill that they're referring to the ballot cannot go into effect,’” Schafer said.
However, that was not the interpretation of Missouri Attorney General Catherine Hanaway, who said instead that the map is in effect. That statement was then echoed by Secretary of State Denny Hoskins.
Schafer said there is legal precedent to suspending laws until a referendum occurs. Additionally, Secretary of State Jay Ashcroft in 2017 suspended Missouri’s right to work law after opponents turned in enough signatures for a referendum.
According to Schafer, Hanaway’s interpretation that the map is in effect is wrong.
“It's just an incorrect reading of the law. The Missouri State Constitution is really clear that any measure referred to the people shall take effect when approved by a majority of the votes cast thereon and not otherwise,” Schafer said.
The Secretary of State office declined to comment on the lawsuit, with the office’s director of communications saying they do not discuss pending litigation. Hoskins has said he won’t make a decision on whether to certify the referendum for voting until the summer of 2026.
The Attorney General’s office could not immediately be reached for comment Tuesday.
Since candidate filing for the 2026 election is in February, Schafer said in addition to the lawsuit, the ACLU also filed a motion to expedite the case so the court can hear it as soon as possible.
“We want to make sure… that the folks that are running for their seats, they know their districts. And right now, there is confusion amongst Missouri voters of what map is in effect,” Schafer said.
Schafer also said she anticipates this case making its way to the Missouri Supreme Court.
