Missouri GOP lays out map fight in US appeals court as ballot window closes

The fight over Missouri’s congressional map was back before a federal appeals court Thursday, as the state prepares to send out ballots in just a matter of days.

The question of whether it was too late to make any changes to the map was central as a three-judge panel for the 8th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals heard oral arguments in a dispute led by several GOP congressional candidates.

“When do we reach the point of no return?” asked U.S. Circuit Judge David Stras, an appointee of President Trump.

Attorney Charles Hatfield, representing a Democratic-aligned organizer challenging the map, argued that moment had passed.

“It’s already too late,” he said. “Those ballots are printed.”

State election officials are moving ahead with a House map giving the GOP a 6-2 advantage after the U.S. Supreme Court issued an emergency ruling last week that blocked a newer 7-1 set of lines from going into effect. It left in place a state Supreme Court ruling that found the new design could not be enforced until voters approved it in a general election referendum.

Those boundaries, which had already been used for the primaries, would have given the Missouri GOP a potential addition to its House delegation. Instead, the ruling struck a blow to Republicans’ efforts to pick up another seat before the midterms.

The U.S. Supreme Court’s decision now has the appeals court grappling with how to handle a separate federal lawsuit brought by Rep. Bob Onder (R-Mo.), who sought to block the state from switching back to the previous map.

U.S. District Judge Stephen Clark, a Trump nominee, had ordered the state to continue implementing the new design to avoid voter confusion, but the Supreme Court halted his ruling.

Still, the justices’ order is technically temporary. The case has returned to the 8th Circuit for further proceedings, leaving the judges scrambling to figure out what to do next.

Hatfield argued Thursday that the appeal was now moot because of the Supreme Court’s intervention. U.S. Circuit Judge James Loken appeared to disagree.

“It’s on our plate, and I think the Supreme Court has said, ‘get to it,'” said Loken, an appointee of former President George H.W. Bush.

Onder’s attorney, Marc Ellinger, tried to convince the judges that the organizer had no right to intervene in the federal case because the referendum would be on the November ballot regardless.

“They’re a voter, and they’re the proponent of a referendum. It’s going to go on the ballot, so at that point they have no interest in this case,” Ellinger said.

An attorney representing Missouri Secretary of State Denny Hoskins (R), meanwhile, urged the appeals court to put a stop to what he described as “redistricting paralysis.” He says the way Missouri judges have interpreted the state’s referendum rules has unconstitutionally wrestled away state lawmakers’ right to administer elections.

“Unless this court addresses the constitutional issues, particularly the Elections Clause, this same dynamic will recur every time redistricting occurs in Missouri going forward,” state Solicitor General Louis Capozzi said.

Observers expect the appellate court’s ruling to be appealed to the Supreme Court, which could once again weigh in on whether Missouri Republicans can use their new map ahead of the fall.

Missouri Republicans last year passed a new congressional map that aimed to give their party one pickup opportunity amid pressure from Trump and national Republicans to redistrict House maps in GOP-led states across the country. The new map dismantled Rep. Emanuel Cleaver’s (D-Mo.) Kansas City-based House seat.

The deadline for Missouri to finalize its ballot has already passed, with military and overseas ballots set to go out beginning Saturday.