Missouri Republicans delivered a key political win to President Donald Trump on Friday by passing a redistricting plan that could provide the GOP with an edge toward gaining another US House seat in the 2026 midterm elections, The Associated Press reported.
According to the report, the Missouri Senate gave final legislative approval to the new map, which is now headed to the office of Republican Governor Mike Kehoe, who is expected to sign it into law. However, those opposing the move immediately launched a referendum petition in hopes of taking the issue to voters statewide.
A National Redistricting Battle Heats Up
With the latest development that unfolded on Friday morning, Missouri has now becomes the third American state to take on mid-decade redistricting, which is part of a growing national strategy across the US to tilt congressional power ahead of the next big election.
According to multiple US media reports, Republican lawmakers in Texas recently passed a map aimed at picking up five new seats, while Democrats in California introduced a proposition of their own that reportedly targetted five additional seats, although theirs still requires voter approval.
With Democrats now requiring only three more seats to retake the US House, every district matters. Controlling the House would give Democrats the power to block Trump’s agenda and launch investigations if he returns to office.
Missouri’s Map Targets Cleaver’s District
Missouri Republicans currently hold six of the state’s eight US House seats, the report said, adding that the new map zeroes in on one out of the two Democratic-held seats: that of Rep. Emanuel Cleaver, a longtime Congressman and Kansas City’s first Black mayor.
The revised map, the report further said, shaves off parts of Cleaver’s Kansas City district, extending it into deeply Republican rural areas. It also reduces the number of Black and minority voters in his district, partly by drawing a line along a street that Cleaver described as a historical segregation boundary.
Cleaver has served in Congress for over 20 years and won reelection with over 60% of the vote in both 2022 and 2024 under previous GOP-drawn districts.
While Governor Kehoe is expected to sign the plan, the referendum petition could delay or even block its implementation if it gains enough support.
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