Governor Kehoe's August 29 call to Missouri lawmakers to return to the Capitol to gerrymander the congressional map and put a constitutional amendment to change the initiative petition process on the ballot in 2026 has resulted in this response from the League of Women Voters of Missouri.

The League of Women Voters of Missouri stands with the Leagues in Texas and California, as well as the ​United States League, firmly opposing mid-cycle redistricting.  Redistricting should happen after the 10-year census cycle to accommodate changes in population in the state.  It is meant to ensure fair representation of growing populations in the U.S. Congress.

Mid-cycle redistricting has the sole purpose of partisan gerrymandering, with the exception of correcting unfair districting. President Trump has requested states to redistrict in order to reshape districts to favor his party, giving him more representatives in Congress. Partisan gerrymandering is legal according to the Supreme Court, but racial gerrymandering is not. Partisan gerrymandering may be legal, but it is not ethical.

The federal government requires that districts have nearly equal populations, be competitive, and not discriminate based on race or ethnicity.  The Missouri Constitution says that districts shall be drawn on the basis of one person, one vote.  No district shall be drawn such that members of any community have less opportunity than other members of the electorate to elect representatives of their choice.

First, the redistricting plan proposed by Gov. Kehoe would split Kansas City and add 12 rural counties to dilute the people of District 5. Federal and state redistricting requirements include respect for communities by keeping cultural and economic communities intact.  Gov. Kehoe's new map disregards this requirement.  Combining parts of Kansas City with much larger rural areas reduces the influence of both the city residents and the rural residents. This is partisan manipulation. The people most affected by district maps will be communities of color who are often underrepresented. That is exactly what the proposed map would do. Districts should reflect their communities to elect their representative, rather than partisan maps determining their representatives.

Secondly, the Governor is calling for a special session to pass restrictions on the initiative petition process that would basically eliminate the voice of the people. He proposes a plan that would require a statewide majority and a majority vote in all of the state's eight congressional districts in order to approve a constitutional amendment. This is compared to our current system, which requires a simple majority for passage.  An analysis by The Missouri Independent last year found that as few as 23% of voters could defeat a statewide ballot measure requiring a concurrent majority in five of eight districts. Requiring a majority in all eight districts will be virtually impossible to pass the initiative petition and would effectively silence the voice of the people. The League of Women Voters of Missouri strongly opposes the proposed change to the Initiative Petition process.

Kay Park
Board President, League of Women Voters of Missouri