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https://apnews.com/article/texas-governor-redistricting-trump-33bfdc8790cdf8201d80c8c89258df3d
Republican Gov. Mike Kehoe said Friday that he is calling Missouri lawmakers into a special session to redraw the state’s U.S. House districts as part of a growing national battle between Republicans and Democrats seeking an edge in next year’s congressional elections.
Kehoe made the announcement just hours after Texas GOP Gov. Greg Abbott signed into law a new congressional voting map designed to help Republicans gain five more seats in the 2026 midterm elections. It marked a win for President Donald Trump, who has been urging Republican-led states to reshape district lines to give the party a better shot at retaining control of the House.
Missouri is the third state to pursue an unusual mid-decade redistricting for partisan advantage. Republican-led Texas took up the task first but was quickly countered by Democratic-led California, where Gov. Gavin Newsom is asking voters to approve a map aimed at giving his party five more seats.
Kehoe scheduled Missouri’s special session to begin Sept. 3. He released a proposed new map that targets Democratic Rep. Emanuel Cleaver’s Kansas City-area district by stretching it eastward into rural Republican-leaning areas.
His agenda also includes another Republican priority — a proposed constitutional amendment that would make it harder to approve citizen-initiated ballot measures, such as abortion-rights and marijuana legalization amendments adopted in recent years.
Kehoe cast both items as a defense against liberal politicians and activists.
“Missouri’s conservative, common-sense values should be truly represented at all levels of government,” he said in a statement.
Democrats were quick to express outrage. Missouri state House Minority Leader Ashley Aune called Kehoe a “Trump puppet” attempting to “steal a congressional seat for Republicans” and gut the ballot initiative process.
Republican Gov. Mike Kehoe said Friday that he is calling Missouri lawmakers into a special session to redraw the state’s U.S. House districts as part of a growing national battle between Republicans and Democrats seeking an edge in next year’s congressional elections.
Kehoe made the announcement just hours after Texas GOP Gov. Greg Abbott signed into law a new congressional voting map designed to help Republicans gain five more seats in the 2026 midterm elections. It marked a win for President Donald Trump, who has been urging Republican-led states to reshape district lines to give the party a better shot at retaining control of the House.
Missouri is the third state to pursue an unusual mid-decade redistricting for partisan advantage. Republican-led Texas took up the task first but was quickly countered by Democratic-led California, where Gov. Gavin Newsom is asking voters to approve a map aimed at giving his party five more seats.
Kehoe scheduled Missouri’s special session to begin Sept. 3. He released a proposed new map that targets Democratic Rep. Emanuel Cleaver’s Kansas City-area district by stretching it eastward into rural Republican-leaning areas.
His agenda also includes another Republican priority — a proposed constitutional amendment that would make it harder to approve citizen-initiated ballot measures, such as abortion-rights and marijuana legalization amendments adopted in recent years.
Kehoe cast both items as a defense against liberal politicians and activists.
“Missouri’s conservative, common-sense values should be truly represented at all levels of government,” he said in a statement.
Democrats were quick to express outrage. Missouri state House Minority Leader Ashley Aune called Kehoe a “Trump puppet” attempting to “steal a congressional seat for Republicans” and gut the ballot initiative process.
