Candidate filings for Congress are set to begin soon in Missouri, yet the people looking to run still have no idea which districts they will be campaigning in as multiple lawsuits against Missouri’s new congressional map have yet to be settled.

One of those lawsuits will determine whether or not the new map can be used after the nonpartisan group, People Not Politicians, submitted more than 300,000 signatures to put a veto referendum on the November 2026 ballot.

Republican state officials say the map is already in place, but reformers and gerrymander opponents say legal and political precedent dictate that the new map be suspended until voters have a say.

A hearing in the case was held on February 10, but time is running out. Candidate filings begin on February 24 at which point the state can go to the courts and say it is too late to suspend the new map.

Here is a quick recap of what has happened so far.

Back in September, the Missouri Legislature approved a new redistricting package under HB 1 that carves up Kansas City in order to give Republicans an advantage in 7 out of the state’s 8 congressional districts. The party currently holds 6 seats. 

A court ruled Friday that the special session called by Gov. Mike Kehoe to pass the mid-decade gerrymander – pushed by President Donald Trump – was constitutional.

Missouri followed Texas and California in setting in motion a new gerrymander to give the party in power an even greater advantage – a partisan fight that has only escalated since.

Not long after the Missouri Legislature approved the redistricting package, People Not Politicians started to collect signatures on a veto referendum. However, state officials have tried everything they can to prevent it from making it on the ballot.

Secretary of State Denny Hoskins said he would not count 100,000 signatures gathered between Sept. 15-Oct. 14. The referendum campaign was reported to ICE. Petition gatherers claim they were offered bribes.

Still, People Not Politicians submitted more than 300,000 signatures. About 110,000 signatures need to be verified in order for the referendum to be certified for the ballot.

There is historical precedent that once signatures are submitted the law being challenged – or in this case the map – should be immediately suspended until voters have a say at the ballot box.

But Hoskins and Republican Attorney General Catherine Hanaway say the map is already in place and won’t be suspended until the signatures are verified. The verification process can be dragged out to July.

Right before Christmas, People Not Politicians filed a lawsuit – one of many that have been filed against state officials over the new map – and the group hopes for an expedited ruling. But this leaves a lingering question mark for candidates and voters.

Which map will be used? Which voters will candidates need to reach out to during their campaigns? Who will voters ultimately consider when primary elections roll around in August?

State officials hope they can run out the clock to protect their gerrymander – but such partisan games only exacerbate cynicism and uncertainty with elections at a time when voter confidence is at historic lows.

More and more the courts are being asked to settle these election disputes in a short time period, something those in power ultimately hope will benefit them because the judicial process is deliberately designed not to be a speedy process.

Hoskins also acknowledged that he wrote biased language for the veto referendum, making it sound like HB 1 eliminated a gerrymander instead of making one worse – yet despite this admission, he still wants to keep some of the language.

Right now, the ballot summary reads:

“Do the people of the state of Missouri approve the act of the General Assembly entitled ‘House Bill No. 1 (2025 Second Extraordinary Session),’ which repeals Missouri’s existing gerrymandered congressional plan that protects incumbent politicians, and replaces it with new congressional boundaries that keep more cities and counties intact, are more compact, and better reflects statewide voting patterns?”

Hoskins wants to replace “that protects incumbent politicians,” but wants “keep more cities and counties intact, and more compact, and better reflects statewide voting patterns” in the language – even if it isn’t true.

Cole County Circuit Judge Brian Stumpe ordered state officials and People Not Politicians to submit new summary proposals that were due on Friday, February 13.

Maine Legislature Passes Bill to Give Voters the Ranked Choice Voting Law They Voted For

The Maine Legislature voted in favor of a bill, LD 1666, on February 10 that would add ranked choice voting to general elections for governor, state Senate, and state House. However, the bill won’t go to the governor’s desk just yet.

Instead, lawmakers have asked the state Supreme Court if the bill is legal under the state constitution. This is the second time the legislature has passed this bill, but they pulled it from the governor’s desk after its first passage.

Maine press and media outlets call the bill a ranked choice voting expansion. But in reality, it gives voters the reform they originally approved in 2016 – it implements ranked choice voting as it was always intended to be used.

After a majority of Mainers approved ranked choice voting, the state Supreme Court issued a non-binding opinion in 2017 that the measure violated a plurality clause in the state constitution. It was then determined that its implementation could not cover all taxpayer-funded elections.

Put simply, the Maine constitution says that candidates in state elections only need a plurality to win, while ranked choice voting requires a majority. So now, the reform is used in state primary elections, U.S. House and Senate elections, and presidential elections.

It is not used in general elections for state office. 

However, state officials and lawmakers used the non-binding opinion in an effort to repeal the will of voters entirely. They passed a law to do this in 2017, but state voters approved a people’s veto in 2018 that reaffirmed their desire to use ranked choice voting. 

This simplifies the legislative and legal rollercoaster reform went through in Maine from 2016 to 2018 (which IVN covered extensively). The point is, state officials attempted to do with ranked choice voting what Missouri officials are doing to stop a gerrymander veto.

And, the issue in both cases is being dragged into election years at a time when deadlines have already been set, candidate filings have or about to occur, and people are about to vote.

With the passage of LD 1666, the legislature issued a joint order that asks justices of the Maine Supreme Court to issue another advisory opinion. The bill will remain in the state Senate until the court issues its opinion.  

Republican Lawmakers in Congress Push SAVE Act Again on Eve of 2026 Midterms

Talk about a last-minute attempt to change election rules in a major way. The U.S. House passed another version of the SAVE Act, which requires photo identification when voting in federal elections and requires people to present proof of citizenship when registering to vote.

Currently, the National Voter Registration Act requires voters to swear on penalty of perjury that they are citizens.

Voter ID has long been considered a state-by-state issue that has broad support among voters. However, critics say the proof of citizenship requirement could disenfranchise millions of Americans who do not have easy access to a passport or birth certificate.

Critics also say it could make it more difficult for people to register to vote who have changed their name. (e.g. through marriage). They focus on this requirement while supporters focus on the popular voter ID provisions.

I broke down the debate on this with the Make Elections Great Again Act, which has also been introduced in the U.S. House and expounds on the SAVE Act by adding more election rules and restrictions, like banning ranked choice voting and universal mail-in voting.

Notably, President Donald Trump has suggested he will sign an executive order requiring voter ID – which as explained on IVN is something he does not have the authority to do. The Constitution grants states the authority to make their own election laws.

Ranked Choice Voting Expansion Steps Closer to Passage in Virginia Legislature

The Virginia Legislature may soon pass its own ranked choice voting expansion under HB630, which was referred out of the state House Privileges and Elections Committee in a 15-6 vote on February 13.

Unlike Maine, Virginia does not use ranked choice voting in any state or federal elections. However, state law allows local jurisdictions to implement the reform for council and county board elections 

Two jurisdictions have done this so far – Charlottesville and Arlington County. And there are more cities and counties looking into its implementation.

HB630 authorizes a permanent option for ranked choice voting expansion, meaning cities and counties would be able to adopt it for any and/or all elections. After being referred out of committee, it now goes to the full House of Delegates.

“Ranked choice voting empowers voters to convey a more complete set of preferences, resulting in representation that better reflects the electorate’s will,” said Robert Melvin, the Northeast region director at the R Street Institute.

Melvin testified before the Privilege and Elections Committee on November 9. He added:

“The ability to express support for several candidates ensures voters’ choices still count, even when their first preference does not prevail. With a majority threshold in place, more voters can reasonably feel that their vote played a role in electing the winner.”

Virginia passed the current local ranked choice voting option in 2020, which municipalities could use for the first time in 2022. The expansion of this option in 4 years may be an indication of how strong the demand is for the reform.

“While some people worry that implementing a new system will confuse voters, the R Street Institute’s research suggests that voters can navigate ranked-choice voting without difficulty,” Melvin said.

“Our findings suggest that, rather than avoiding it, voters will actively use the ability to rank candidates – particularly during primary contests.” The referenced research can be found here.

Ranked choice voting is currently used or will soon be used in 48 jurisdictions, representing 14 million voters. This is mostly cities, a handful of counties, but does include two states – Maine and Alaska.

Maryland Independents Demand Right to Vote at State Capitol Committee Hearing

A committee hearing was held in Maryland on February 11 for HB0496, a semi-open primary bill that would open the state’s taxpayer-funded primary elections to one million registered independent voters who are currently denied the right to participate.

According to the better elections group, Open Primaries, two dozen independents came from across the state to demand an equal and meaningful say in elections, including veterans and students.

The bill was introduced by Democratic Maryland Delegate Lily Qi, who said “voting rights are civil rights.”

“Making our elections more democratic is fundamental to our rights as Americans, and should be the new frontier of our civil rights movement.”

Republican co-sponsor Delegate Stuart Schmidt noted that the number of voters who choose not to register with a political party in the state is growing and said, “it is neither fair nor practical to shut them out of the most consequential elections.”

Open Primaries, which filed a lawsuit challenging the state’s closed primary elections in 2025, was present to give testimony. The group’s senior vice president, Jeremy Gruber, participated with representatives from Independent Voters of Maryland and Veterans for All Voters.

Under a semi-open primary system, registered party members have to vote in their respective party’s primary. Registered independent voters are given a choice between a Republican and Democratic ballot, but must stick with that party’s candidates.

A similar system was approved by the New Mexico Legislature in 2025.