Judge upholds Missouri congressional districts

The lawmaker-drawn congressional districts are constitutional, Cole County Circuit Court Judge Dan Green ruled this afternoon.

Unless the state Supreme Court rejects his ruling, the districts approved last year over Gov. Jay Nixon's veto will be the ones candidates run from and winners will serve for the next 10 years.

That includes the new 3rd District that includes Cole, Callaway, Osage and Miller counties in Mid-Missouri, the eastern part of the Lake of the Ozarks, the central part of Jefferson County south of St. Louis and the Columbia Bottoms region (where the Missouri River runs into the Mississippi River) in St. Charles County.

It also includes the so-called "dead lizard" 5th District that includes downtown Kansas City and the much more rural Lafayette, Ray and Saline counties.

An appeal is expected.

More details in Saturday's edition of the News Tribune.