JEFFERSON CITY — Missourians from all over the state gathered outside the Missouri Supreme Court to protest against gerrymandering on Tuesday.

Inside the Supreme Court, justices were hearing arguments on Luther v. Hoskins about whether the legislature was legally allowed between census years to try and redraw congressional maps. Normally, after the U.S. Census occurs every 10 years, states will redraw their district maps.

Many Missouri voters gathered and said they believe under Missouri’s constitution, redistricting is only allowed after that census period.

“If they rule against us, what you’re basically gonna have is that legislature is going to be all Republican, because you know you have this state majority Republican already,” said Rev. W.T. Edmondson, who was there protesting.

With the new mid-census redistricting, some fear that Democratic districts are going to be manipulated into Republican districts.

“Taking away my vote and taking away the vote of the citizens of Kansas City, and just ... for no apparent reason other than they just don’t want a Democrat to win, that’s not right,” said Marsha Lerenberg, an affected Kansas City resident and protest participant.

At the urging of President Donald Trump, Gov. Mike Kehoe called the legislature into special session last fall to redraw the state’s eight congressional districts with the goal of adding an additional Republican-leaning district. The maps produced eliminated a former Democratic stronghold in the Kansas City area, leaving the congressional seats with a 7-1 tilt towards the Republican Party.

Many organizations joined together at the protest to stand against gerrymandering, including People Not Politicians, League of Women of Voters Missouri and clergymen from across Missouri.

Kay Park, the president of League of Women of Voters Missouri, spoke at the protest and also testified at the hearing. “Redistricting mid-cycle is unconstitutional based on the Missouri constitution, which I support very much,” Park said.

When asked why people should care about this issue, Park said, “It is affecting everybody, even if you don’t really realize it, so if we let this stand, they can do whatever they want.”

Luther v. Hoskins was filed September 12, 2025, and in December 2025, a court rejected the challenge. That decision was appealed to the Missouri Supreme Court, which set a hearing on arguments from both sides for Tuesday.