Missouri election officials still do not know which congressional map will govern the August primary, creating uncertainty that attorneys, election officials and referendum advocates warn could trigger lawsuits and confusion for candidates and voters.
Due to recent unanimous rulings by the Missouri Supreme Court, a congressional map redrawn last year can currently be used in the Aug. 4 primary. But the court also noted it is impossible to know for certain which map is officially in effect until signatures submitted by the nonprofit People Not Politicians are fully verified by the Missouri secretary of state’s office.
The dispute centers on House Bill 1, the 2025 law that redrew Missouri’s eight U.S. congressional districts. The new map splits Kansas City into three congressional districts and stretches the 5th District roughly 200 miles east through 14 counties along the Missouri River, reshaping the district currently represented by Democratic U.S. Rep. Emanuel Cleaver, one of two Black members of Missouri’s congressional delegation. The other is Democratic U.S. Rep. Wesley Bell of the St. Louis area.
Republicans now hold six of Missouri’s eight congressional seats. The map redraw came after President Donald Trump pressured Missouri Republicans to help preserve the party’s narrow majority in the U.S. House ahead of the 2026 midterm elections. Five Republicans have filed to challenge Cleaver, who said he plans to remain in the race regardless of which map is ultimately used.
People Not Politicians submitted more than 300,000 signatures seeking a referendum on the new map, exceeding the legal threshold required to suspend the law pending a public vote, according to referendum supporters. But Secretary of State Denny Hoskins said county clerks and local election authorities are still verifying signatures and have until July 27 to complete the process.
The court also heard arguments over whether the map complied with constitutional requirements that districts remain compact and contiguous. During arguments before the court, Assistant Attorney General Kathleen Hunker defended the map and the state’s redistricting process.
“There is no such thing as a perfect map,” Hunker argued, adding that the plan met constitutional requirements.
Referendum advocates warn the delay could create election chaos if the map is later determined to have been suspended before the primary election takes place.
“What happens next is chaos,” said Chuck Hatfield, an attorney representing People Not Politicians. “One could speculate that a candidate might file a lawsuit and say: ‘Well, the primaries were conducted using the wrong maps.’”
Last week, Hoskins told reporters he does not plan to immediately determine whether the referendum qualified for the ballot.
“There’s county clerks and local election authorities that are still verifying those signatures, and they have until July 27,” Hoskins said. “I can start my certification procedures on July 28, and obviously they have to be completed by Aug. 4.”
Waiting until late July or August would likely create a chaotic legal situation in which the legitimacy of the Aug. 4 primary could be challenged, referendum supporters argue.
The Missouri Supreme Court’s ruling itself acknowledged the uncertainty.
In the opinion, Judge Ginger Gooch wrote that “it is impossible to say as of this opinion whether the … referendum petition filing was ‘legal, sufficient, and timely’ and, therefore, whether HB1 … can only go into effect when approved by a majority of the votes cast thereon.”
That language prompted Boone County Clerk Brianna Lennon, a Democrat, to inform Hoskins that she would not redraw districts until his office determines whether the referendum petition is sufficient.
“I am caught in the untenable position of trying to predict when and how you will issue a determination about the sufficiency of the petition,” Lennon wrote in a letter to Hoskins. “Until that time, I have no actionable legal information as to what congressional district map is in effect.”
Hoskins responded that Lennon was simply “not doing her job.”
Lennon pushed back, saying her office has been preparing to run elections under the 2025 map.
“I’ve done my job,” Lennon said, “and I’m waiting for him to do his.”
Sylvester Brown Jr. is the Deaconess Foundation Community Advocacy Fellow.