Missouri secretary of state sues to close records on redistricting referendum signatures
Secretary of State Denny Hoskins wants the courts to shield him from disclosing how his office is reviewing a disputed batch of signatures on a referendum petition challenging the state’s new congressional map.
In a lawsuit filed Monday, Hoskins is suing People Not Politicians, the political action committee pushing for a referendum. Hoskins is asking the court to declare that he does not have to fulfill a Sunshine Law request from Emily Gerber, deputy director of the PAC, because the records being sought are protected from disclosure as public records because there is ongoing litigation over the information they contain.
“The secretary’s determination that the records were closed at the time of Ms. Gerber’s request was based on the nature of the records as being related directly to pending litigation, not on the identity of the requester,” Assistant Attorney General Kate Walker wrote.
The lawsuit was filed, she wrote, because the Sunshine Law allows government entities to ask the courts whether a decision to withhold records was correct.
https://missouriindependent.com/2026/06/23/missouri-secretary-of-state-sues-to-close-records-on-redistricting-referendum-signatures/
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