As the Missouri Legislature meets for a special session to redistrict the state’s congressional maps, some members of the state Republican Party have expressed hesitancy on the illegal move.
Missouri’s special session gaveled in on Wednesday afternoon after Gov. Mike Kehoe (R) formally announced the move last week. In a press release, Kehoe said the session is about “clarity for voters and ownership of our future.”
Missouri, as well as Indiana and Texas, have felt pressure from President Donald Trump and his administration to gerrymander their states and give Republicans an advantage in the 2026 midterms.
Texas Gov. Greg Abbott (R) signed new maps into law last week, which are projected to give Republicans an additional five seats in the U.S. House of Representatives next cycle. Missouri’s new maps will likely hand one of the two seats in the state currently held by a Democrat over to the Republicans.
Even though the state is dominated by Republicans, some GOP lawmakers have expressed pushback to the plan.
“I’m not real crazy about revisiting the maps. I really think we need to stick with when the census is done,” Rep. Bill Falkner (R-St. Joseph) said Tuesday.
Other Republicans have reportedly shown hesitation because of the legal questions involved with redistricting early. Under the state constitution, mid-decade redistricting is illegal.
Congressional boundaries are typically redrawn once every ten years after the denial census to adjust representation in Congress for population shifts. According to a report from Pew Research, new maps have been implemented between censuses twice — once in Texas in 2003 and once in Georgia in 2005 — to give Republicans a partisan advantage.
Kehoe’s special session also includes legislation that would make it more difficult to amend the state’s constitution with ballot measures. This comes after Missouri voters approved a constitutional amendment for a right to reproductive health care last year.