News & Commentary

The Missouri Supreme Court announced Friday evening that oral arguments will take place May 12 in an appeal of a lower court’s decision to deny a request to suspend House Bill 1’s new congressional maps until after a vote of the people. 

"This is a win for speech, democracy, and all current and future voters in Missouri. The vital work of organizations like the League and the NAACP is necessary to help Missourians navigate a system that is deeply rooted with systemic barriers that unnecessarily impede Missourians from exercising their fundamental right to vote."

This order defies over a century of judicial precedent while rendering Missourians’ constitutional right to the referendum process second to the will of politicians. The ACLU of Missouri is committed to our state constitution’s founding principle that all power is derived from the people, not loaned from the government. We will immediately appeal this decision.

“The court rightfully rejected the portion of House Bill 1878 which imposed criminal penalties for political speech, voter registration, and civic engagement efforts by organizations like the League of Women Voters and the NAACP. Third-party voter registration activities blocked by the challenged legislation are critical, constitute core political speech, and are necessary to ensure that voters can get on the rolls and participate in elections. Legislation like HB 1878 was designed to block access for Missouri voters and halt the ability of civic engagement organizations to engage their fellow citizens."

“We respectfully disagree with the trial court’s ruling, which misapplied the law and overlooked overwhelming evidence that the state’s unprecedented mid-decade congressional map violates the Missouri Constitution’s compactness requirement."

In some instances, people are unconstitutionally held in a detention center while waiting to receive treatment for a longer period of time than the maximum sentence available for the crimes alleged. The court must intervene and order DMH to remedy this crisis.

“We are intervening in this case to defend a bedrock constitutional principle: everyone counts. Past attempts to rig the census at the expense of immigrants and communities of color have been struck down, and the court should do the same here.”

The decision not only allows the state to target transgender Missourians access to health care but also leaves everyone's health care options at the whims of politicians, should the care you depend on ever fall into the political arena.

“By attempting to enact the new maps despite receiving more than 305,000 signatures from Missouri voters demanding a referendum, the Secretary of State is denying a longstanding tradition, judicial precedent, and our constitutional rights. For more than a century, the courts have upheld Missourians’ constitutional right to referendum, and we ask the courts to do the same with House Bill 1.”