Missouri appears likely to redraw congressional map during Trump's redistricting push

California prepares for redistricting ballot

How California is responding to Texas Republicans approving redistricting map 04:22

President Trump signaled Thursday that Missouri volition beryllium the adjacent authorities to redraw its legislature lines to payment the Republican Party up of the 2026 midterm elections. 

It's a continuation of the arms contention betwixt Republican-and Democratic-controlled states implicit redistricting, kickstarted by President Trump. At the president's urging, the GOP-controlled Texas authorities House  passed a new, heavy Republican representation this week, with the authorities Senate expected to ballot connected the caller districts Friday. 

In a station connected Truth Social connected Thursday, Trump wrote, "The Great State of Missouri is present IN. I'm not surprised… We're going to triumph the Midterms successful Missouri again, bigger and amended than ever before!" He aboriginal said successful a vigor interrogation the aforesaid time that Missouri, Indiana and Florida are the adjacent GOP-controlled states helium believes volition redraw legislature maps to make much Republican districts. 

Missouri has 8 U.S. House seats successful Congress, and 2 of them are held by Democrats. Any effort to gully a caller territory to springiness Republicans 1 much spot successful their favour would apt absorption connected changing the Kansas City-focused territory represented by longtime Democratic Rep. Emanuel Cleaver. 

A spokesperson for Missouri Gov. Mike Kehoe, who has not yet made the telephone for a peculiar league for redistricting, said he's continuing to person conversations with authorities enactment "to measure options for a peculiar league that would let the General Assembly to supply legislature districts that champion correspond Missourians." 

Missouri's treasurer and lieutenant governor, some Republicans, besides accidental they favour a caller map.

"We missed the accidental to unafraid a 7-1 representation successful 2022, a mistake President Trump rightly calls connected america to fix. Missouri's adjacent legislature representation indispensable support Missouri values and guarantee our representatives successful Congress are arsenic blimpish arsenic the voters who nonstop them," Lt. Gov. David Wasinger said successful a connection successful July.

The anticipation successful the authorities superior of Jefferson City is that redrawing to adhd 1 much Republican-friendly spot is "for definite happening," according to 1 Missouri Republican operative acquainted with conversations among lawmakers.

"[Governor Kehoe] is doing everything that tin beryllium done to forestall a ineligible challenge. They're conscionable crossing the Ts and dotting the I's. I haven't heard thing astir immoderate preservation from the governor's office," the operative said. 

"The appetite is determination and I deliberation everybody conscionable knows it's going to happen," the operative added. 

The redistricting program would apt beryllium tacked onto a veto league successful the authorities that was already scheduled to instrumentality spot connected Sept. 10. 

Most of Missouri's GOP legislature members person already thrown their enactment to a representation projected by the White House and Mr. Trump's orbit, according to this operative. Mr. Trump won the Show-Me State by 18 points successful 2024. 

"I judge that President Trump's squad and his White House unit are precise funny successful redistricting due to the fact that really, a batch is astatine stake," Republican Rep. Bob Onder said successful a section NBC News interrogation successful precocious July. 

Some Missouri Republicans pushed — and failed — to gully a representation including a caller Republican-leaning spot that would effect successful a GOP-Democratic divided of 7-1 during the past redistricting rhythm successful 2021 and 2022. 

"We should person enacted a 7-1 representation 3 years ago, but amended precocious than never," Missouri GOP State Senator Curtis Trent posted. 

Missouri GOP lawmakers visited the White House earlier this summertime for what was characterized arsenic a wide gathering with medication officials earlier the larger redistricting warfare began. Another antecedently scheduled gathering astatine the White House with Indiana lawmakers is besides planned for Aug. 26, according to a White House official.  

While the summation Republicans could marque successful Missouri is apt conscionable 1 seat, a GOP-led displacement could person a large impact. If Democrats triumph arsenic fewer arsenic 3 GOP seats successful the U.S. House successful adjacent year's midterm elections, they could flip power of the chamber. The fig needed to displacement who leads the enclosure whitethorn beryllium affected by the last result successful the broader redistricting clash betwixt Republicans and Democrats successful the coming weeks and months. 

At Mr. Trump's urging, Texas Republicans triggered the redistricting feud with its efforts successful caller weeks to overhaul the state's maps and marque 5 legislature districts held by Democrats much favorable to the GOP. With that displacement connected the brink of becoming law, California Democrats are moving to offset those gains with their ain redrawing, which would instrumentality 5 of its GOP-held districts and marque them much winnable for Democrats. 

California Democrats look a higher hurdle than Texas Republicans due to the fact that they indispensable amend the state's constitution, successful bid to sideline a national redistricting committee for the adjacent fewer cycles and unit done much overly partisan lines. That means California voters volition fundamentally beryllium capable to determine successful a November peculiar predetermination whether to motion disconnected connected Democrats' plan. 

If California and Texas fundamentally cancel each different retired with their caller legislature lines, the shifts the White House is pushing successful smaller states including Missouri and Indiana could loom larger. While some are reddish states with Republican governors, each has Democrats successful their legislature delegations. 

In Missouri, immoderate determination to effort and marque Cleaver's Kansas City territory a GOP spot is apt to beryllium met with a large outcry, akin to what Democrats person seen successful different states this twelvemonth wherever mid-decade redistricting could beryllium successful play. Cleaver, a erstwhile seat of the Congressional Black Caucus, archetypal won his House spot successful the 2004 predetermination aft having served arsenic politician of Kansas City, Missouri. 

In effect to Mr. Trump's Thursday Truth Social post, Missouri Democratic authorities Sen. Stephen Webber said connected societal media that it "Looks similar Republicans successful the #MoLeg person received their marching orders from the national government. Pathetic to ticker grown big "leaders" flop astir similar caught food erstwhile a New Yorker that thinks the Chiefs play successful Kansas tweets astatine them however to tally Missouri."