Missouri’s high court blocks a Trump-backed House map

Missouri’s Supreme Court on Thursday blocked a U.S. House map drawn to the White House’s taste and said the public would have to vote on it. The order is a rare speed bump in a year of maps engineered like machine parts: fewer competitive seats, more certainty, less argument.

National Republicans wanted Missouri’s delegation to look more like the president’s coalition. The state court said the method was the problem. Putting a map to a vote sounds like democracy. It is also a delay, and delays in redistricting are how incumbents keep their offices warm through November.

Every midterm is a fight over arithmetic dressed as principle. This one is being fought, seat by seat, in statehouses the national press visits only when a court slams a gavel.