Missouri’s congressional map is headed back toward the U.S. Supreme Court after a federal appeals court ruled that the state must use the same districts in November that it used during its August primary.
A three-judge panel of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit ruled Monday that Missouri should use its 2025 congressional map for the November 3 general election rather than reverting to the 2022 districts.
The ruling does not take effect immediately. The appeals court stayed its own order until September 28, giving opponents an opportunity to seek emergency relief from the Supreme Court. For now, election officials remain under orders to use the 2022 map.
At the center of the dispute is an unusual situation created by Missouri holding its August 4 primary under one congressional map while potentially conducting the general election under another.
“The Constitution does not permit Missouri to use a different congressional district map in the November 2026 general election than it used in the August 2026 primary election,” the appeals court wrote.
The judges concluded that congressional elections constitute a continuous process extending from the primary through the general election.
“Article I, Section 2’s right to participate in the procedure of choosing a member of Congress requires continuity in the constituency throughout all stages of a single election,” the court wrote.
BREAKING: The Eighth Circuit ruled that Missouri must use its 2025 congressional map in November, holding that switching to the 2022 map after the August primary violates the Constitution. The court ordered entry of a permanent injunction, but paused it for one week. pic.twitter.com/gBgpfQWKwI
— SCOTUS Wire (@scotus_wire) September 21, 2026
The practical consequences are substantial. The court cited estimates indicating that more than 1.4 million Missourians live in different congressional districts depending on which map is used. Roughly 284,000 people voted during the primary in districts different from those in which they would vote under the 2022 boundaries.
The 2025 map was signed into law by Republican Gov. Mike Kehoe in September 2025. It substantially restructures the Kansas City-area 5th Congressional District represented by Democrat Emanuel Cleaver. Republicans supported the mid-decade redistricting effort, while opponents organized a referendum campaign challenging the new boundaries.
The Missouri Supreme Court ruled September 3 that the referendum petition was valid and that the 2025 map could not take effect unless voters approved it. That decision put the 2022 boundaries back into place for the general election.
Republican Rep. Bob Onder, state Sen. Rick Brattin and two voters then pursued their federal case, arguing that changing districts between the primary and general election violated voters’ federal constitutional rights.
The Eighth Circuit agreed with that central argument and directed the federal district court to issue a permanent injunction requiring use of the 2025 districts.
The political stakes are significant, although the map itself does not determine election outcomes. Missouri’s current congressional delegation consists of six Republicans and two Democrats. The new boundaries alter Cleaver’s Kansas City-based district in ways designed by Republican lawmakers to make it more favorable to a Republican candidate.
Opponents say they intend to return to the Supreme Court, arguing in part that changing maps now would disrupt an election already underway, with absentee ballots distributed and some votes already cast.
That means Monday’s decision is consequential, but it is not necessarily the final word.
For Missouri voters and election officials, the congressional-map fight now returns to the Supreme Court with the November election only weeks away.
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