The US Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit on Monday ruled that Missouri must hold its November elections using the new congressional districting map enacted in 2025.

The current dispute began after the Missouri legislature passed House Bill 1 last September. The bill altered Missouri’s Fifth congressional district, which has been held by Democrats since 2025. The incumbent representative for the Fifth District, Emanuel Cleaver, called the bill an “unconstitutional gerrymander.” President Donald Trump praised the bill, describing the redistricted map as “fairer and much improved.”

Opponents gathered signatures for a referendum, and in September, the Missouri Supreme Court ruled that the petition had kept the new map from going into effect, ordering the state to use its 2022 district maps. Supreme Court Justice Brett Kavanaugh then denied the state’s emergency request to use the redrawn map. On the same day as Kavanaugh’s ruling, a federal district judge temporarily barred the state from using anything other than the 2025 map, however the district court judge’s order was then stayed by the Supreme Court. 

Monday’s opinion holds that if Missouri switched back to older districting lines after the state already ran its August primaries using the 2025 map, it would raise constitutional concerns. The opinion cites Article 1, Section 2 of the Constitution, which states that members of Congress are chosen “by the People.” The court draws on United States v. Classic and Wesberry v. Sanders, reasoning that because these voting rights apply to primary elections, a subsequent change in districting for the general election would disenfranchise the constituents.

The court on Monday acknowledged that they were not interpreting Missouri’s state constitution, instead relying on the Supremacy Clause to conclude that Missouri “must yield” to the federal constitutional requirement that the same map govern all stages of the election. The court also rejected arguments made under the Purcell principle, which discourages courts from changing rules too close to an election; here, the court held that the 2025 map had been in place for nearly the entire election cycle and thus it constituted the status quo.

Monday’s ruling directed the district court to enter a permanent injunction requiring use of the redistricted map, but to apply a stay until September 28, at which time the 2025 map becomes final law unless the Supreme Court enters a conflicting order.