Missouri Secretary of State Redistricting Damages Challenge

A pro-voting class action lawsuit seeking $500 for each Missouri voter impacted by Secretary of State Hoskins’ refusal to certify the redistricting referendum.

Background

Two Missouri voters filed a class action lawsuit in state court against Secretary of State Denny Hoskins (R) in both his personal and professional capacity seeking damages for a class of Missourians who voted in the primaries but have been assigned to a different congressional district for the midterm election. Plaintiffs assert Hoskins’ tactical delay to wait until the last day to refuse to certify the referendum petition resulted in voters being “deprived of their right to cast a ballot in the Primary to nominate candidates of their choice for the General Election.” Plaintiffs argue that Hoskins “neglected or refused to perform [his] duties” by rejecting the certification, thus entitling class members to compensation under state law. The lawsuit seeks certification of class members and $500 for each certified member.

Why it Matters

Hoskins sought to create obstacles for referendum organizers and Missouri voters at every step since the gerrymandered map was passed by the Legislature in September 2025. After the state supreme court ordered Hoskins to implement the 2022 map for the midterms, a Republican congressional candidate filed a federal lawsuit and obtained a temporary injunction barring the state from using any map but the gerrymander. Instead of waiting for the courts to weigh in on which map was in place for the midterms, Hoskins immediately ordered local election officials to use the gerrymandered map that the state supreme court explicitly ordered Hoskins not use because it “never went into effect.” Hoskins only backtracked moments before the state supreme court found him in contempt. 

Latest updates

• Sept. 16, 2026: Plaintiffs filed their complaint.