For Immediate Release

October 23, 2025

Jackson County Prosecutor Melesa Johnson announced today that her office will not pursue criminal charges against residents who may have signed the Congressional Redistricting petition twice due to delays in accepting the now approved petition.

The state has provided contradictory guidance about when signatures would be valid, leaving many Jackson County residents uncertain about whether their signatures would count and whether their voices would be heard. 

Missouri’s Constitution gives Missourians 90 days to gather signatures for a petition to challenge legislation. But state officials must first approve the ballot language before signatures can be collected, a process that in the past has taken 30 days or more, leaving a much shorter timeline for signatures to be gathered across the state. The Missouri Supreme Court ruled this practice unconstitutional, ruling the state cannot restrict Missourians’ constitutional right to petition by refusing to count signatures collected early in the process.

Despite that ruling, state officials announced that signatures collected before Oct. 15 for the redistricting petition would not be counted. They also indicated that circulating the petition early is not a crime.

If any Jackson County residents had already signed the redistricting petition before Oct. 15 and then learned their signatures may not be counted, they may have signed again to ensure their voices would be heard, unaware that signing a petition twice is technically a misdemeanor criminal offense under Missouri law. 

“The people of Jackson County who want to sign this petition are trapped in a confusing situation. People may have signed again after October 15 because of mixed messaging, not because they were trying to break the law. They simply want to ensure their voices were being heard on an issue that directly affects their representation in Congress.

“Because of the Missouri Supreme Court’s clear ruling and unclear messages from the state about which signatures would count, this office will not seek charges against Jackson County residents for signing the redistricting petition twice. Instead, we believe it’s up to our state leaders to verify and count each signature and provide clear, consistent guidance to voters in the future. 

“Our office is always committed to seeking justice and we strongly support fair elections, but we also want to ensure every voter in Jackson County has a chance to participate in democracy and be heard without fear of prosecution,” said Prosecutor Johnson. 

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Media Contact: 

Jazzlyn Johnson

Director of Communications 

Jackson County Prosecutor’s Office 

415 E 12th Street

Kansas City, MO - 64106

(816) 929-1289 

jazzlyn.johnson@jacksongov.org 

https://www.jacksoncountyprosecutor.com