The Missouri Senate on Friday reportedly gave its final approval to a congressional redistricting plan championed by President Donald J. Trump, a move that could give Republicans an additional seat in the U.S. House of Representatives in the 2026 midterm elections.
The measure, which passed both chambers of the legislature with strong support, now heads to Governor Mike Kehoe, a Republican who is expected to sign it into law.
But opponents have already begun organizing a campaign to block the new map through a statewide referendum. If they succeed in gathering the required signatures, voters could ultimately decide whether the changes stand.
Mr. Trump celebrated the development on his social media platform, Truth Social, praising state lawmakers for delivering a “new, much fairer, and much improved” congressional map.
“Thank you very much to the Great State of Missouri for the Redistricting which will, hopefully, give us an additional Seat in Congress!” Mr. Trump wrote. “Congratulations to Governor Mike Kehoe, Senate President Pro Tempore Cindy O’Laughlin, Senate Majority Floor Leader Tony Luetkemeyer, Speaker Pro Tem Chad Perkins, Representative Dirk Deaton, and many other Patriotic Legislators, for your FANTASTIC work on this new Map, which will help send an additional MAGA Republican to Congress in the 2026 Midterm Elections. It is wonderful to see Republicans in the ‘Show Me State’ standing up to Save our Country, and, MAKE AMERICA GREAT AGAIN. THANK YOU MISSOURI — MAGA2026!”
The redistricting effort centers on altering Representative Emanuel Cleaver’s district in Kansas City, long a Democratic stronghold.
Mr. Cleaver, Kansas City’s first Black mayor and a fixture in Congress for more than two decades, has consistently won reelection with over 60 percent of the vote.
The revised boundaries would reduce the proportion of Black and minority residents in his district, a change critics argue weakens minority representation.
Republicans, however, see the new lines as a correction that better reflects Missouri’s political makeup, which has trended heavily Republican in statewide and federal contests.
They argue that voters deserve representation aligned with the state’s electorate and that the changes could ensure Missouri’s voice in Washington more accurately mirrors its population’s political leanings.
The battle over Missouri’s map is part of a broader national fight. In Texas, Republican lawmakers recently advanced redistricting plans aimed at adding as many as five new GOP-majority seats.
In California, by contrast, Governor Gavin Newsom has proposed redistricting measures designed to give Democrats a similar edge. With the House of Representatives narrowly divided — 219 Republicans to 213 Democrats — even one additional seat could prove decisive in determining control.
For now, the focus turns to Governor Kehoe, who is expected to sign the measure, and to the referendum campaign already taking shape. If the map survives legal and electoral challenges, Republicans will have not only delivered on Mr. Trump’s call but also positioned themselves to strengthen their majority in 2026.
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