Missouri’s redistricting fight took another sharp turn Monday when the 8th Circuit Court of Appeals ordered the state to reinstate a GOP-friendly congressional map ahead of the November 2026 general election, as reported by Townhall.
The decision adds yet another round of judicial whiplash to a dispute that had appeared settled.
The map eliminates a Democratic district in Kansas City and has been described as gerrymandered.
Breaking: US 8th Circuit of Appeals orders Missouri to use the redistricted congressional map for the 2026 midterms
Redistricted Map
Republicans: 7 (+1)
Democrats: 1 (-1)(+/- vs last map) pic.twitter.com/OmObW8EqSf
— OSZ (@OpenSourceZone) September 21, 2026
The federal appeals court nevertheless concluded that Missouri’s plan to use its 2022 map in the coming general election violates the Constitution.
That conclusion puts the 8th Circuit’s ruling in direct conflict with a Missouri Supreme Court decision blocking the 2025 map.
With courts pulling the state in opposite directions, the fight now appears likely to move to the U.S. Supreme Court, also known as SCOTUS.
The federal appeals court did not leave much room for ambiguity about which map it believes Missouri must use.
Its decision said only the 2025 map satisfies the Constitution and federal law, while the planned use of the 2022 boundaries does not.
“This Court holds that Missouri’s current plan to use the 2022 map in the November 2026 general election violates the Constitution,” the decision said.
“Only use of the 2025 map complies with the Constitution and federal law. We affirm the district court and remand for entry of a permanent injunction.”
That language affirms the district court and directs the entry of a permanent injunction.
The result is a federal order requiring Missouri to return to the 2025 map unless the U.S. Supreme Court steps in and changes the situation.
The timing makes the ruling especially jarring.
Tuesday is the deadline for Missouri to mail ballots to voters, but the 8th Circuit reasoned that the state still has enough time to change congressional maps before the November 2026 general election.
The permanent injunction will not take effect immediately. The federal appeals court set Sept. 28 as the effective date, providing a window for SCOTUS to review the dispute before Missouri officials are required to implement the 2025 map.
“If the Supreme Court has not stayed or otherwise altered the permanent injunction by that time, Secretary Hoskins and all others bound by this judgment must fully implement the 2025 map for the November 2026 general election,” the order said.
The court also addressed the obvious institutional conflict created by its decision. “The Court trusts that the Missouri Supreme Court will respect this Court’s decision under the Supremacy Clause.”
That pointed statement places the clash between the federal appeals court and Missouri’s highest court front and center.
One court blocked the 2025 map, while the other has now ordered state officials to use it unless SCOTUS intervenes.
A stay motion against the map remains in effect at the U.S. Supreme Court, according to the source report.
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 8th Circuit’s Sept. 28 deadline gives the high court time to stay, alter, or otherwise address the permanent injunction.
Until then, Missouri officials face competing judicial directions over which congressional boundaries should govern the November 2026 election.
The federal appeals court says the 2022 map is unconstitutional, while the Missouri Supreme Court ruling blocked the 2025 replacement.
The practical issue is not merely a courtroom exercise because the ballot mailing deadline is already pressing.
Even so, the 8th Circuit concluded that the calendar does not prevent Missouri from replacing the map before the election.
The decision therefore sends the state’s redistricting battle into another frantic phase after earlier rulings appeared to point elsewhere.
Missouri’s map saga, already loaded with courtroom reversals, now awaits possible action from SCOTUS before the federal injunction takes effect.
For the moment, the 8th Circuit’s order stands as the latest word.
Unless the U.S. Supreme Court acts by Sept. 28, Secretary Hoskins and others bound by the judgment must implement the 2025 map for the November 2026 general election.
