In blow to Trump, Missouri top court blocks Republican-drawn congressional map

The Missouri Supreme ​Court on Thursday blocked ​a Republican-drawn ‌new congressional ​map from being used in November's midterm elections, dealing a ‌blow to the party's odds of maintaining its narrow U.S. House majority. The ruling could return longtime Democratic ‌U.S. Representative Emanuel Cleaver to the House, after ‌his Kansas City-based district was dismantled under the redrawn map.

The court found the state's Republican secretary of ⁠state, Denny ​Hoskins, improperly ⁠rejected an effort to put the new map to a ⁠voter referendum before it could take effect. Republican lawmakers ​had installed the new map as part ⁠of a broader campaign backed by President Donald Trump to ⁠redraw district ​lines to favor the party's candidates.

Some Democratic states responded with their own redistricting plans. ⁠But Republicans eventually secured an advantage after a U.S. ⁠Supreme ⁠Court ruling permitted several conservative Southern states to eliminate districts with significant Black populations.