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Gov. Abbott acceptable to motion redistricting measure
Republican Gov. Mike Kehoe said Friday that helium is calling Missouri lawmakers into a peculiar league to redraw the state's U.S. House districts arsenic portion of a increasing nationalist battle betwixt Republicans and Democrats seeking an borderline successful adjacent year's legislature elections.
Kehoe made the announcement conscionable hours aft Texas GOP Gov. Greg Abbott signed into instrumentality a caller legislature voting map designed to assistance Republicans summation 5 much seats successful the 2026 midterm elections. It marked a triumph for President Trump, who has been urging Republican-led states to reshape territory lines to springiness the enactment a amended changeable astatine retaining power of the House.
Missouri is the 3rd authorities to prosecute an antithetic mid-decade redistricting for partisan advantage. Republican-led Texas took up the task archetypal but was rapidly countered by Democratic-led California, wherever Gov. Gavin Newsom is asking voters to o.k. a representation aimed astatine giving his enactment 5 much seats.
Missouri Gov. Mike Kehoe walks up to a lectern earlier a quality league astatine the governor's bureau successful Jefferson City successful May 2025.
Jonathan Shorman/The Kansas City Star/Tribune News Service via Getty Images
Kehoe scheduled Missouri's peculiar league to statesman Sept. 3. He released a projected caller representation that targets Democratic Rep. Emanuel Cleaver's Kansas City-area territory by stretching it eastward into agrarian Republican-leaning areas.
His docket besides includes different Republican precedence — a projected law amendment that would marque it harder to o.k. citizen-initiated ballot measures, specified arsenic abortion-rights and marijuana legalization amendments adopted successful caller years.
Kehoe formed some items arsenic a defence against wide politicians and activists.
"Missouri's conservative, common-sense values should beryllium genuinely represented astatine each levels of government," helium said successful a statement.
Missouri's treasurer and lieutenant governor, some Republicans, person besides said antecedently that 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.
In a Truth Social post, Mr. Trump praised the move, saying it "will springiness the unthinkable radical of Missouri the tremendous accidental to elite an further MAGA Republican successful the 2026 Midterm Elections."
Democrats were speedy to explicit outrage. Missouri authorities House Minority Leader Ashley Aune called Kehoe a "Trump puppet" attempting to "steal a legislature spot for Republicans" and gut the ballot inaugural process.
It "marks the worst menace to the integrity of our authorities authorities since pro-slavery lawmakers voted for Missouri to articulation the Confederacy successful 1861," Aune said successful a statement.
Missouri is represented successful the U.S. House by six Republicans and 2 Democrats — Cleaver and Reps. Wesley Bell successful St. Louis.
Cleaver called the projected redistricting an onslaught connected ideology perpetrated by Mr. Trump.
"This effort to gerrymander Missouri volition not simply alteration territory lines, it volition soundlessness voices. It volition contradict representation," Cleaver said successful a connection portion vowing not to concede the seat.
Missouri Democrats person small quality to forestall Republican lawmakers from enacting a caller map. Unlike successful Texas, wherever Democrats near the authorities for 2 weeks to hold a vote, Missouri Democrats' lack would not forestall a quorum for business. And though Democrats could filibuster successful the Senate, Republicans could usage procedural maneuvers to unopen that down, arsenic they did earlier this twelvemonth to walk a projected law amendment restricting abortion.
Republicans won a 220-215 House bulk implicit Democrats successful 2024. Democrats would request to nett 3 seats successful adjacent year's predetermination to instrumentality power of the chamber.
Some Missouri Republicans had pushed for a representation that could springiness them a 7-1 borderline erstwhile redrawing districts aft the 2020 census. But the GOP legislative bulk yet opted against it. Some feared the much assertive program could beryllium susceptible to a ineligible situation and could backfire successful a mediocre predetermination twelvemonth for Republicans by creating much competitory districts that could let Democrats to triumph 3 seats.
Republican officials successful Florida, Indiana and elsewhere besides are considering revising their U.S. House districts, arsenic are Democratic officials successful Illinois, Maryland and New York.
In Utah, a justice precocious ordered the Republican-led Legislature to gully caller legislature districts aft uncovering that lawmakers had weakened and ignored an autarkic committee established by voters to forestall partisan gerrymandering. Republicans person won each 4 of Utah's legislature seats nether the representation approved by lawmakers successful 2021.
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