A Missouri judge ruled Wednesday that a referendum cannot override the state legislature’s authority to enact congressional maps, clearing the way for the state to use a Republican-backed map in November’s general election.The ruling is a victory for Missouri Republicans and preserves a map that is expected to make the Kansas City-area congressional seat long held by Rep. Emanuel Cleaver (D-MO) shift in favor of Republicans.Cole County Circuit Judge Daniel Green sided with Republican Secretary of State Denny Hoskins, finding that he had the “authority to reject [the petition] for violating the Missouri Constitution.”
“Instead of addressing a single subject, tied to a single article in the Missouri Constitution, [the petition] makes sweeping reforms affecting multiple provisions of the Missouri Constitution,” Green wrote in his decision.The legal fight stems from a congressional map approved by Missouri lawmakers last year that drew opposition from Democrats and voting-rights groups. One group, People Not Politicians, gathered more than 300,000 signatures in an effort to force a veto referendum on the map. Under Missouri law, voters can challenge enacted legislation through a referendum if supporters gather enough signatures and subsequently win a majority of votes in a statewide election.However, Hoskins rejected the referendum petition this month, prompting the legal challenge over whether the signatures should have halted implementation of the congressional map. Following the rejections, Missouri used the GOP-backed map in its primary elections.
