In July 2025, lawmakers in the U.S. state of Missouri began considering a legislative redistricting plan ahead of the 2026 United States House of Representatives elections.
On August 29, 2025, Missouri Governor Mike Kehoe announced a special session to redraw the congressional maps with a proposed map dismantling the safe blue 5th congressional district. [1]
Governor Kehoe is expected to sign the proposed map bill into law on September 28.
In July 2025, The Missouri Independent reported that the Trump administration had urged Republican Party leadership in the state of Missouri to redistrict the state's legislative boundaries in order to benefit Republicans. The plan elicited concern from some Missouri Republicans such as House Speaker Pro Tempore Chad Perkins saying it broke precedent of redistricting after every census. Along with redistricting in Texas, the proposal began amid concern from Trump and his allies that a Republican loss in the 2026 United States House of Representatives elections could damage Trump's legislative agenda and lead to investigations. [2]
Momentum began building behind the scenes by August 2025. Early that month, The Kansas City Star reported emails that showed Kehoe gathered the state's top legislative leaders at the Missouri Capitol for a private meeting about redistricting on August 1, 2025. [3] The Star also obtained emails showing that top staffers in Kehoe's office discussed the legality of redistricting with high-ranking officials in the Missouri Office of Administration. [4] Additional records obtained by the Star showed that messages condemning the effort were flooding Kehoe's office, with an internal staff report listing opposition to redistricting as the No. 1 "hot topic" among residents who contacted the governor in late July. [5]
Multiple state legislators called on Mike Kehoe to call a special session immediately to redraw the congressional districts. [6] On August 21, 2025, Donald Trump stated on Truth Social that Missouri was ready to redraw its congressional districts. [7]
On September 9, the Missouri State House voted to advance the new map that would net the GOP another seat. [8] The Bill headed to state senate where it also advanced on September 12. [9] It now heads to Governor Kehoe for his signature.
The proposed redistricting map intends to give Republicans one additional seat in the 2026 United States House of Representatives elections. The map splits voters of Jackson County between three congressional districts and puts Democratic Party Representative Emanuel Cleaver's district once anchored in Jackson County stretching all the way east into Osage County, while the 4th and 6th districts gain part of Kansas City in their new configurations. [10]