Republican candidates press appeals court to swap Missouri voting maps despite ballots distributing soon

The lawyer representing Republican candidates in Missouri told a federal appeals court it’s still not too late to change the congressional map for the midterm election even after the U.S. and state Supreme Courts have already blocked the move.*

Missouri must begin distributing its ballots to overseas and military voters by Sept. 19, but Marc Ellinger, an attorney representing the group of GOP candidates, told the 8th Circuit Court Thursday that date is not the point of no return.

“I don’t believe we’re there, judge,” Ellinger said. “I believe we’ve still got a little ways to go.” 

Ellinger argued that the Sept. 19 federal deadline for sending military and overseas ballots can be modified by a court waiver.

The Missouri Supreme Court blocked the gerrymandered map, which would eliminate a Democratic district in Kansas City, until voters weigh in with a referendum vote in November. However, Republican candidates filed a separate lawsuit in federal court where a district judge blocked the state from using any map other than the 2025 gerrymander. The U.S. Supreme Court put that decision on hold until a federal appeals court can complete its review and the high court decides whether it will also take the case.

Despite those orders — and an imminent Sept. 19 federal deadline for local election officials to send ballots to military and overseas voters — Republican candidates are still seeking a permanent injunction from the 8th Circuit barring use of the state’s existing 2022 map for the remainder of this election cycle. 

People Not Politicians, the pro-voting group opposing the gerrymander, argued Thursday that it’s already too close to the general election for the 8th Circuit to order a different map. 

But Ellinger insisted it’s not too late.

While the GOP candidates pressed their argument for changing the map for the midterms, Missouri Solicitor General Louis Capozzi focused on the future, asking the court to prevent Missouri voters from blocking maps by putting them to a statewide referendum vote in the future. 

Despite that, Capozzi made no secret of his opposition to the Missouri Supreme Court’s unanimous ruling that voters have the right to veto those maps.

“It’s hard to imagine a greater destruction of state legislative authority than what the Missouri Supreme Court sanctioned here,” Capozzi said. “If this maneuver stands — and it will unless the federal courts intervene — we will have redistricting paralysis in Missouri.” 

Capozzi warned that, unless the court intervenes, Missouri voters will retain the ability to have the final say on redistricting maps.

*The Elias Law Group (ELG) represents pro-voting parties in this case. ELG Firm Chair Marc Elias is the founder of Democracy Docket.