Richard von Glahn says "Ballots have been printed, and Missourians have already voted" after the Eighth Circuit ruling
Richard von GlahnExecutive director of People Not Politicians, the group that circulated the referendum petition and intervened in the federal case
In a statement reported after the Eighth Circuit ruled that Missouri must use the 2025 map, von Glahn said "Ballots have been printed, and Missourians have already voted" and that officials should stop pursuing "pointless legal action." He said he was confident the U.S. Supreme Court would again find that the 2022 map would be used in November.
Responding to
Ordering Missouri to return to the 2025 map after ballots have been printed and mailed and voting has begun would create the electoral disorder that the Purcell principle exists to prevent.
“Ballots have been printed, and Missourians have already voted … Thousands more will vote before this order seeks to take effect. Officials should stop wasting taxpayers’ money on pointless legal action and instead focus on administering our elections.”
Original text
Reporting
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Where this statement fits
Should Missouri be allowed to use its 2025 congressional map in the 2026 general election?
Missouri lawmakers passed a new congressional map, House Bill 1, in September 2025, and the State used it in the August 4, 2026 primary. On September 3, 2026, the Supreme Court of Missouri ruled unanimously that a referendum petition kept the map from taking effect and that the 2022 map remains in force for the November general election. Gov. Mike Kehoe, Attorney General Catherine Hanaway, Secretary of State Denny Hoskins and President Donald Trump said in early September that the primary map should be used in November, and the Eighth Circuit held on September 21 that using the 2022 map violates the U.S. Constitution. People Not Politicians, the Campaign Legal Center and the ACLU argued that Missouri law makes the 2022 map the only valid map and that ballots had been mailed under it. On September 25, 2026, the U.S. Supreme Court, in an unsigned per curiam order that records no dissent, stayed the federal injunctions, said that under state law the 2022 map must be used, and said lower courts should not require use of the 2025 map in the 2026 election. Kehoe called that decision disappointing and said Missouri will follow the order.
Source and context
Original text
About this source
Unsigned per curiam order on an application that Circuit Justice Brett Kavanaugh referred to the full Court. It stays the Eighth Circuit's September 21 mandate and September 22 order and the district court's September 21 and 22 injunctions, keeps the Court's September 10 stay in place, and says the lower courts should not prohibit use of the 2022 map or require use of the 2025 map in the 2026 congressional election in Missouri. The text of the order shows no separate opinion or noted dissent.
Reporting
About this source
Report on the Eighth Circuit's September 21 ruling, with statements from Sen. Rick Brattin and Richard von Glahn.
Archived copy (opens in a new tab)Before the quotation
The Eighth Circuit ruled on September 21, 2026 that Missouri must use the 2025 map in November and stayed its order until September 28. People Not Politicians attorney Chuck Hatfield said the group planned to appeal, the Missouri Independent reported.
After the quotation
On September 25, the U.S. Supreme Court stayed the Eighth Circuit's mandate and the district court's injunctions that required the 2025 map.
How this statement is classified
The label describes this statement's response within the context above.
Why this label?
The reference point is use of the 2025 map in the 2026 general election. Von Glahn says ballots have been printed and voting has begun, calls the legal effort to change the map "pointless" and says he expects the 2022 map to be used, which opposes using the 2025 map. The closest competing label, “Challenged the characterization”, loses because he opposes the outcome rather than disputing a description.
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The Dispute Index. "Richard von Glahn says "Ballots have been printed, and Missourians have already voted" after the Eighth Circuit ruling". First published: 2026-09-26. Last updated: 2026-09-26. https://disputeindex.com/events/2717-in-a-statement-reported-after-the-eighth-circuit