Docket 26A388
People Not Politicians v. Onder
DecidedSep 25, 2026
Per Curiamdecision
Source: CourtListener.
Court blocks switch to a new congressional map for Missouri's 2026 election
What it does
The Supreme Court stayed (paused) federal court orders from a district court and the Eighth Circuit that would have forced Missouri to switch from its 2022 congressional map to its 2025 map in the middle of the already-started 2026 election. This keeps the 2022 map in place, consistent with the Court's earlier September 10 stay, and blocks any further orders requiring the 2025 map or barring use of the 2022 map absent a further order from the Supreme Court itself.
Who benefits
Missouri election officials and voters who have already received or cast ballots printed under the 2022 congressional map, since that map will remain in use for the 2026 election.
Who is affected
The voters and candidates who sued seeking to require use of the 2025 map, since federal courts will not order that map into effect for this election.
Practical impact
Missouri's 2026 congressional elections will proceed using the 2022 district map rather than the 2025 map, meaning ballots already printed and voting already underway will not be disrupted. Federal courts are barred from further ordering a switch to the 2025 map or blocking use of the 2022 map unless the Supreme Court itself later lifts its stays.
Majority reasoning
The Court reasoned that it had already twice acted in this litigation—first when the Circuit Justice denied a stay of the Missouri Supreme Court's decision keeping the 2022 map in place, and second when the full Court stayed a district court injunction that would have forced use of the 2025 map—so the Eighth Circuit's order requiring the 2025 map was inconsistent with those prior rulings. The Court held that its precedents have never established that Article I, Section 2 requires a state to use its primary-election map in the general election, and given that the equities strongly favor a stay, it was enough that the merits were not clear-cut. Applying the Purcell principle, which cautions federal courts against changing election rules close to an election, the Court found this case an even stronger candidate for that caution because the election had already begun: ballots using the 2022 map had been printed and mailed, and absentee, military, and overseas voting had already started. The majority rejected the Eighth Circuit's view that the Missouri Supreme Court's September 3 decision caused the last-minute disruption, noting that the Missouri Supreme Court had signaled back in May 2026, well before the primary, that the 2025 map might not take effect without voter approval, so the Secretary of State knowingly assumed the risk in using the 2025 map for the primary anyway. The Court also concluded that states, not federal courts, get to decide whether last-minute election changes serve their own interests, subject to limited federal constraints.
Constitutional question
Does the U.S. Constitution's requirement that House elections be held under state-set rules (Article I, Section 2) force Missouri to use its 2025 redistricting map in the 2026 general election, even though Missouri's own courts ruled that map has not taken legal effect under state law?