KANSAS CITY, Mo. — Missouri voters will cast their ballots in November using the 2022 congressional map after the U.S. Supreme Court blocked the Republican-backed redistricting plan.
Secretary of State Denny Hoskins instructed election officials to use the 2022 congressional district boundaries after the Missouri Supreme Court held him in contempt until he complied with their order.
Attorney General Catherine Hanaway said the decision is clear.
"It is absolutely the secretary's intention to use the 2022 map. We believe that is what the law is, according to the Missouri Supreme Court," Hanaway told reporters on Thursday.
The change will not affect the candidates already on the ballot. In Congressional District 4, Republican incumbent Rep. Mark Alford faces Democrat Jordan Herrera.
In District 5, incumbent Democrat Rep. Emanuel Cleaver II faces Republican challenger Rick Brattin.
Cleaver welcomed the ruling.
"I appreciate the fact that I get a chance to run in a district where I live and where I have served all of my adult life," Cleaver said.
Brattin, a Missouri state senator, is the candidate most impacted by the court's decision. In a statement, he said he is "disappointed" by the outcome.
“I am disappointed in the U.S. Supreme Court’s decision earlier today, which would result in the disenfranchisement of Missouri primary voters and potentially set a dangerous precedent that could allow district changes between the primary and general elections in the future. I am glad that the United States Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit has sent a signal about the importance of clearing up this confusion by scheduling arguments on the case for the coming week, and I hope that they will stand up to ensure Missouri voters have certainty that their ballots will be counted.”
Missouri Republicans had pushed the "Missouri First" map, which passed last year and was used in the August primary. That map split Kansas City into three congressional districts, with the goal of making Cleaver's 5th District more favorable for Republicans to win the seat long held by Democrats.
The path to this outcome involved hundreds of thousands of signatures and numerous legal challenges from redistricting opponents, including the group People Not Politicians.
Chuck Hatfield, an attorney for People Not Politicians, reflected on the long fight.
"Shoutout Rchard von Glahn for sticking to this fight the whole way," Hatfield said with tears in his eyes. "Man, there were a lot of days when he could've quit, you know? Good stuff."
The legal process even challenged experts. Allen Rostron, a law professor at UMKC, said on Wednesday the case broke new ground.
"They're breaking some new ground and doing things there aren't a customary practice or pattern," Rostron said.
Gov. Mike Kehoe said he still holds out hope the "Missouri First" map could prevail with U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals scheduling some hearings next week.
"What we call the "Missouri First Map," the map that Missourian's voted on in the August primary, is still a possible map which we think is right for Missouri, is to continue to vote on the same map in November. We hope that is successful," Kehoe said.
House Speaker Rep. Jon Patterson, a Republican from Lee's Summit, said it is time to move forward.
"I think the rulings have been made," Patterson said. "I really think it's time to put this to an end and print the ballots and go vote," Patterson said.
This story was reported on-air by a journalist and has been converted to this platform with the assistance of AI. Our editorial team verifies all reporting on all platforms for fairness and accuracy.
![020626_KSHB_Image_NXA_Web_Standard Cube[88].jpg](https://ewscripps.brightspotcdn.com/dims4/default/0ead409/2147483647/strip/true/crop/300x225+0+13/resize/960x720!/format/webp/quality/90/?url=http%3A%2F%2Fewscripps-brightspot.s3.amazonaws.com%2F8f%2F6c%2Ffad8bd2346c5a4d4ead793017d4a%2F020626-kshb-image-nxa-web-standard-cube88.jpg)