Missouri's congressional contests are descending into administrative chaos as a prolonged redistricting battle leaves candidates and election officials unsure which district lines will be in effect for November. The state's top court and the U.S. Supreme Court have weighed in, but litigation continues, creating a volatile environment just weeks before ballots are due to be cast.
The core dispute centers on whether Missouri will use the six-to-two Republican-leaning map that was in place for the 2022 elections or the more aggressive seven-to-one map that Republicans drew last year and used in the August primaries. The Supreme Court has signaled that the older map must be used this fall, but a lawsuit filed by Republican candidates, including Rep. Bob Onder and 5th District hopeful Rick Brattin, is still pending, with a hearing scheduled for Thursday. That case could return to the high court, leaving the final outcome uncertain.
For now, counties are printing ballots under the assumption that the six-to-two map will govern, based on guidance from Secretary of State Denny Hoskins's office, according to Boone County Clerk Brianna Lennon. But the ongoing litigation has forced election officials into a holding pattern, delaying ballot preparation and complicating voter education efforts.
“The hardest thing has been trying to comply with all things at the same time, and in light of that, it's mostly just putting us in a holding pattern,” Lennon told The Hill. “While we can move forward with the other parts of the election administration process, like getting our election judges recruited and trained … and doing voter registration, the ballot printing is a pretty important part of the process, and having that delayed does impact our overall preparation.”
The uncertainty has also upended campaign strategies. Candidates who spent the summer introducing themselves to voters in districts that may no longer be theirs are now scrambling to reconnect with areas they thought they had left behind. Rep. Emanuel Cleaver, a Democrat whose Kansas City-based district was dismantled under the seven-to-one map, voiced frustration with the turmoil.
“People in Missouri are angry,” Cleaver said. “I think all of us would be, including me, would be wise to realize that all of this chaos floating around the United States right now is not being embraced willingly or kindly by the public.”
The affected districts include the 2nd, 3rd, 4th, and 5th, along with the open 6th District, where Rep. Sam Graves is retiring. Under the 2022 map, Boone County is split between the 3rd and 4th districts, but under the newer map, it would be divided between the 3rd and 5th. That shift has forced local officials to adjust their plans and could increase costs for counties that rely on outside vendors for ballot printing.
Despite the chaos, some election officials remain confident they can pull off a smooth election. Michael Whitehead, chair of the Jackson County Board of Election Commissioners, said the legal wrangling has added drama but not distraction. “Our staff is pressing forward with business as usual,” he said.
The timing is tight: overseas and military ballots must be sent out by Sept. 19. With less than two months until Election Day, the state is racing to educate voters about which district they live in and which candidates they can support. The Supreme Court's denial of the GOP's bid to reinstate the seven-to-one map has only added to the uncertainty, and the secretary of state now faces a contempt hearing over his handling of the standoff.
Meanwhile, state judges are demanding clarity on how to proceed, and candidates like Onder are left to navigate a shifting political landscape. “I have my campaign team right now scrambling to find those events that … I thought I wasn't going to go to because I was no longer running in that district,” he said.
The political stakes are high. The seven-to-one map was designed to give Republicans a pickup opportunity, but the six-to-two map could preserve Democratic chances in the 5th District. The ongoing legal battles and administrative hurdles are testing the resilience of Missouri's election system and the patience of its voters.
