JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. — Missouri’s Republican Governor, Mike Kehoe, has called a special legislative session to redraw the state’s congressional district maps, a move that critics are calling a politically motivated attempt to secure an advantage for the GOP in the upcoming midterm elections. The announcement comes amid a broader push by Republicans nationwide to reshape district lines in states where they hold a legislative majority.
The Stakes of Redistricting
The special session, scheduled to begin next month, marks a rare mid-decade attempt to change the state’s political map. Missouri’s current congressional delegation is split, with five Republicans and three Democrats. The new map, proposed by the Governor’s office, would target Democratic Congressman Emanuel Cleaver’s district by stretching it eastward from Kansas City into more rural, Republican-leaning areas. This change could potentially shift the balance to a 6-2 Republican majority.
The move follows a directive from President Trump, who has urged Republican-led states to take advantage of their legislative power to create more favorable maps before the 2026 midterm elections. Texas recently passed a similar mid-decade redistricting bill, which is expected to help the GOP gain several seats.
Missouri Democrats, who have little power to prevent the Republican-led legislature from passing the new map, have condemned the move.
“This attempt to gerrymander Missouri will not simply change district lines, it will silence voices. It will deny representation,” Congressman Cleaver said in a statement. “I will not concede this seat to a partisan power grab. The people of my district deserve a say in who represents them, and this is a blatant effort to strip them of that right.”
The previous redistricting process in Missouri, which took place after the 2020 census, resulted in the current 5-3 map. Some Republicans had pushed for an even more aggressive 7-1 map at that time but ultimately backed away, citing concerns that such an extreme gerrymander might be vulnerable to a legal challenge and could even backfire by creating more competitive districts in a poor election year.
Broader Political Context
The special session also includes another Republican priority: a proposed constitutional amendment that would make it more difficult for citizens to approve ballot measures. This comes after recent years have seen successful citizen-led initiatives on issues such as abortion rights and marijuana legalization, which have been opposed by a majority of Republicans in the legislature.
Redistricting, the process of drawing electoral district boundaries, is a crucial part of the American political system. It can determine which party controls the U.S. House of Representatives for the next decade. The legal criteria for these maps, which vary by state, generally require that districts be contiguous, compact, and as equal in population as possible. The Missouri Secretary of State’s office maintains a wealth of data on the state’s elections and congressional districts, which you can access via the state’s official website.
The decision to call a special session on such a sensitive and controversial topic is a clear indication of the high stakes involved in the fight for political control. With the legislative process now in motion, the Missouri statehouse will become a focal point of the national debate on gerrymandering and voting rights.