WASHINGTON, United States: The U.S. Supreme Court again rejected Missouri’s Trump-backed congressional map Thursday.
Clearing the way for the state to use its 2022 districts in the November midterm elections. The brief order drew no publicly noted dissent and did not explain the justices’ reasoning.
The Trump administration had urged the court to preserve the newer districts, which Republicans designed to improve their chances of gaining another House seat.
The ruling leaves in place a Missouri Supreme Court decision requiring officials to use congressional districts adopted after the 2020 census.
Republican Secretary of State Denny Hoskins had instead instructed local election officials to use the newer map. He cited a competing federal court order requiring those districts.
The dispute could result in Missouri using different congressional boundaries in the general election than it used during the August primary. Some voters could therefore find themselves in different districts for November.
Republican lawmakers drew the challenged map after President Donald Trump urged GOP-led states to redraw districts ahead of the midterms.
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The plan targeted a Kansas City-based seat held by Democratic Representative Emanuel Cleaver and sought to help Republicans win seven of Missouri’s eight House seats.
The Missouri Supreme Court also ordered a referendum on the new districts to appear on the November ballot. Justice Brett Kavanaugh had earlier rejected a state request to block that ruling.
