The Missouri House is set to vote Tuesday on new congressional boundaries that would wipe out a Democrat-controlled seat—part of President Donald Trump’s broader push to have Republican-led states redraw maps in his party’s favor ahead of next year’s midterms.
Lawmakers gave the map a preliminary green light Monday night, sparking outrage from Democrats. Final passage is expected by Friday, putting Missouri on track to become the third state in recent weeks to push through mid-decade redistricting as part of a national GOP effort to lock in control of the House.
“Redistricting fight” by Mike Luckovich
Democrats, hopelessly outnumbered in the GOP supermajority legislature, blasted the proposal as “brazen,” “shameless,” and “all to protect Trump.” They also questioned whether a redraw mid-decade was even legal. Typically, states only redraw congressional maps once a decade after the census, making Missouri’s move especially aggressive.
“It is ethically and morally wrong to bow to a dictator when colleagues admit that their votes change because of a phone call from a president. We’re not serving Missouri. We’re serving one man, and that is not a democracy. That’s submission,” said state Rep. Kem Smith, a Democrat from St. Louis, during a debate on the House floor.
“We just redistricted three years ago,” added state Rep. Wick Thomas, a Democrat from Kansas City. “So are we just going to redraw the lines every year if we don’t like the results? Is that what we think of our Republic? Of our state? Of the democratic institution?”
The new map would break apart the Kansas City-based district held by longtime Democratic Rep. Emanuel Cleaver, splicing the city into rural-heavy districts and leaving Republicans favored in seven of Missouri’s eight House seats—up from the six they hold now.
“This is a better map,” said GOP state Rep. Dirk Deaton. “It comports with every legal standard and every constitutional requirement.”
If the House signs off Tuesday, the map heads to the state Senate and then to Republican Gov. Mike Kehoe, who’s been pushing for the redraw. Once it hits his desk, it’s almost sure to become law—Democrats have little power to stop it. Their only real long shot would be forcing a statewide referendum, but even that might not flip the outcome.
Democrats are trying to slow things down anyway. They’re holding town halls, organizing rallies—including one at the Capitol on Wednesday—and warning voters that the map dilutes the political power of Missouri’s largest city and forces urban and rural communities with little in common into the same districts. Dozens of residents testified against the plan at a public hearing last week.
Not every Republican is on board. State Rep. Tony Harbison called the whole exercise a waste of time.
“Our plate is full of things that we need to be doing for the people of this state, and this ain’t one of them,” he said—drawing rare applause from Democrats.
Still, the dissent isn’t enough to derail the plan.
“My colleague across the aisle brought up the fact that President Donald J. Trump has, in fact, asked Missouri to consider redistricting, and thank God he has,” said GOP state Rep. Justin Sparks. “Every single vote in Congress matters now.”
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Missouri is just the latest state to bend to Trump’s demands. Republicans in Texas already redrew their map to eliminate five Democratic-leaning seats. Conservatives in Florida, Indiana, and Ohio are considering similar moves. Democrats in California have floated their own plan to eliminate five GOP-held districts in response.
“This isn’t policymaking. This is cowardice,” said state Rep. Jo Doll, a Democrat, CNN reported. “Instead of listening to the people we represent, you are twisting the process to protect Trump’s grip on power and tip the scales in his favor.”
If Missouri succeeds, it could open the floodgates—encouraging other GOP-led states to redraw the map, and the balance of power in Washington, before voters even head to the polls.
