Justice Brett Kavanaugh accepted a request to intervene in a Missouri redistricting case for the third time on Tuesday night, agreeing to hear arguments after a federal judge ruled in favor of a 2025 map that would grant Republicans an additional seat in the House of Representatives. This ruling followed the Eighth U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals decision supporting the new map despite previous orders from Missouri’s state Supreme Court and a stay by the Supreme Court. The case centers on whether the new district map, which was not subject to voter approval, should be used for this year's elections.
Written locally by qwen2.5:14b on 2026-09-23,
using this article's own text rather than the other coverage of the
same event (that is the story summary below).
Story summary
A federal appeals court in Missouri ordered on September 18 that the state must use newly drawn Republican-backed congressional districts for November’s midterm elections, despite previous rulings by both the U.S. Supreme Court and the Missouri Supreme Court blocking their implementation. The new map, favored by former President Donald Trump, aims to benefit Republicans by altering district boundaries and splitting existing ones. This decision follows a long-standing legal battle over redistricting in Missouri, which has seen multiple conflicting court orders affecting voter registration and ballots already printed using the old 2022 map. As a result, the case is likely headed back to the U.S. Supreme Court for a final ruling before November's elections.
Written for “Missouri Redistricting Saga” on 2026-10-05,
grounded in this article and the 26 other(s) covering the same event.
The U.S. Supreme Court will hear arguments in a Missouri redistricting case for a third time after Justice Brett Kavanaugh accepted a request to intervene in the case once again Tuesday night.
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Kavanaugh → hear → case
The divisive redistricting map drawn in 2025 would grant Republicans an additional seat in the House of Representatives if it is put in place ahead of the 2026 elections.
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it → draw → elections
A federal judge in Missouri ruled in favor of the 2025 map last month, but the Supreme Court put a stay on that ruling just two weeks ago.
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Court → rule → ruling
Opponents of the map issued an emergency appeal to the Supreme Court late Tuesday night after the St. Louis-based Eighth U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals ruled in favor of the new map on Monday.
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Court → issue → Monday
Kavanaugh handles emergency requests for the state of Missouri and directed supporters of the new map to respond to the appeal by Wednesday at 2 p.m. ET.
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Kavanaugh → handle → ET
The development is the latest in a roller-coaster ride of legal decisions that have seen the new map fly up and down between federal and state courts, the Supreme Court and the Missouri Supreme Court.
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map → see → Court
The case began when Missouri Secretary of State Denny Hoskins rejected a petition for the 2025 map to be placed on the ballot for a vote in 2026.
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map → begin → 2026
Instead, the new map was used to determine congressional districts for the state's primary elections.
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map → use → elections
The Democratic group behind the petition, People Not Politicians, asked a state court to intervene, saying the group's petition of 300,000 signatures should have triggered a referendum on the new map under Missouri's constitution.
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petition → ask → constitution
The Missouri Supreme Court agreed, writing that the 2025 map cannot go into effect "unless and until approved by the voters at the November 2026 general election."
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map → agree → election
Hoskins then appealed the case to the Supreme Court, but Kavanaugh declined to hear his request on Sept. 4.
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Kavanaugh → appeal → Sept.
Meanwhile, Republican candidates who won primary elections based on the 2025 maps brought up a separate case in federal court, arguing that if the general election takes place under the 2022 map their districts would be very different from the primary maps.
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districts → win → maps
Many general election voters, they noted, would also be presented with options they had no role in voting for during the primaries.
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they → note → primaries
Eighth Circuit Judge Stephen R. Clark ruled in favor of those candidates and issued an order requiring that the 2025 maps be used in this year's elections, effectively contradicting the state Supreme Court.
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maps → rule → Court
This time, People Not Politicians asked the U.S. Supreme Court to intervene, and Kavanaugh agreed.
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Kavanaugh → ask → ?
The court issued an unsigned order blocking Clark's order until the Eighth Circuit issued a formal ruling in the case.
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Circuit → issue → case
The Eighth Circuit then fast-tracked the case and ruled in favor of the 2025 map.
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Circuit → track → map
People Not Politicians filed their latest request for an intervention on Tuesday night, arguing that the court's ruling against the new map was still in effect, and pointing to statements from Missouri election officials saying it is too late to change what maps are used in the upcoming elections.
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maps → file → elections
The Missouri Association of County Clerks and Election Authorities already announced it will not be using the 2025 map for November, arguing in an appeal filing that the state does not have enough time to provide new ballots.
"
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state → announce → ballots
Ballots have been printed, and Missourians have already voted.
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Missourians → print → ?
Thousands more will vote before this order seeks to take effect.
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order → vote → effect
Officials should stop wasting taxpayers’ money on pointless legal action and instead focus on administering our elections," People Not Politicians director Richard von Glahn said in a statement.
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Glahn → stop → statement
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
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Press → contribute → report
The Aporia
