Today, People Not Politicians Missouri submitted more than 300,000 signatures to the Missouri Secretary of State—over two and a half times the number legally required to place a referendum on HB1, the state’s newly passed congressional map. Even excluding signatures gathered before the Secretary of State’s delayed approval of the petition, PNP is submitting more than enough valid signatures to qualify the referendum.
“The citizens of Missouri have spoken loudly and clearly: they deserve fair maps, not partisan manipulation,” said Richard von Glahn, Executive Director of People Not Politicians. “We are submitting a record number of signatures to shut down any doubt that Missouri voters want a say.”
HB1 Cannot Take Effect Without a Statewide Vote
Under the Missouri Constitution, any law sent to voters cannot take effect unless approved by a majority vote. Once signatures are submitted, HB1 must be paused until Missourians vote on it at the ballot box.
Legal Battles Loom
If the Secretary of State refuses to certify the referendum or attempts to put HB1 into effect prematurely, People Not Politicians is prepared to take immediate action in state court. The organization expects the State and allied intervenors to attempt procedural delays, but remains confident that Missouri’s courts will uphold voters’ constitutional rights.
State law requires the Secretary of State to begin certification or send copies of the petition to local election authorities for verification within two weeks.
Signature verification usually takes 8-10 weeks, but could drag out into the summer. HB1 must remain paused pending certification. When the State completes its review of the submitted signatures, the public record will confirm that Missourians met every legal requirement for a referendum—and that any effort to block their vote undermines more than a century of Missouri precedent.
Additional Legal Challenge Pending
A separate case, Luther v. Hoskins, challenges whether Missouri’s legislature may redraw congressional districts mid–cycle at all. A ruling in that case could independently block HB1 without requiring a referendum.
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