{"id":4759,"date":"2025-09-09T12:57:22","date_gmt":"2025-09-09T17:57:22","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/westplexnews.com\/index.php\/2025\/09\/09\/missouri-house-passes-gerrymandered-congressional-map-limits-on-initiative-petitions-2\/"},"modified":"2025-09-09T12:57:22","modified_gmt":"2025-09-09T17:57:22","slug":"missouri-house-passes-gerrymandered-congressional-map-limits-on-initiative-petitions-2","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/westplexnews.com\/index.php\/2025\/09\/09\/missouri-house-passes-gerrymandered-congressional-map-limits-on-initiative-petitions-2\/","title":{"rendered":"Missouri House passes gerrymandered congressional map, limits on initiative petitions"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><img decoding=\"async\" width=\"1024\" height=\"683\" src=\"https:\/\/missouriindependent.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/05\/54521302847_26a750e7d0_k-1024x683.jpg\" class=\"attachment-large size-large wp-post-image\" alt=\"\" loading=\"lazy\" \/><\/p>\n<p>House Speaker Jon Patterson presides over the final day of the 2025 legislative session on May 15 (Tim Bommel\/Missouri House Communications). <\/p>\n<p><span>Bills creating a gerrymandered congressional map and making it virtually impossible to change the state constitution through the initiative petition process are on their way to the Missouri Senate.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span>The Missouri House gave final approval to both proposals Tuesday after two days of contentious debate.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span>Gov. Mike Kehoe called the legislature back into session after <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/missouriindependent.com\/2025\/07\/25\/trump-white-house-pressing-missouri-republicans-to-redraw-congressional-map\/\"><span>weeks of pressure from the President Donald Trump <\/span><\/a><span>for GOP-run states to redraw congressional districts to ensure more Republican seats before next year\u2019s midterm elections.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span>In Missouri, the effort targeted the 5th District, currently held by Democratic U.S. Rep. Emanuel Cleaver of Kansas City, by carving it up and dispersing its voters into three districts that give Republicans an electoral advantage in seven of the state\u2019s eight congressional districts.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span>\u201cThis is a superior map,\u201d said state Rep. Dirk Deaton, a Noel Republican sponsoring the proposed new congressional map. \u201cIt better represents the state of Missouri.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n<div class=\"halfwidth\">\n<div class=\"tipContainer\">\n<div class=\"tipTextContainer\">\n<h4>Need to get in touch?<\/h4>\n<h4>Have a news tip?<\/h4>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"tipIconContainer\">\n\t\t\t\t<a href=\"mailto:info@missouriindependent.com\"><button>CONTACT US<\/button><\/a>\n\t\t\t<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p><span>In addition to the gerrymandered map, Republicans also took aim at the citizen initiative petition process. The House approved a plan Tuesday that would require constitutional amendments put on the ballot by Missouri voters to attain both a simple majority statewide and a majority in all eight congressional districts in order to pass.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span>Based on last year\u2019s election results, that change would mean <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/missouriindependent.com\/2025\/09\/04\/as-few-as-5-of-voters-could-defeat-initiative-petitions-under-missouri-gop-legislation\/\"><span>as few as 5% of voters could defeat any ballot measure<\/span><\/a><span>. The proposal would also ban foreign contributions to initiative petition campaigns, something that is already illegal.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span>If it passes the Senate, the issue would go on the statewide ballot in 2026 and require a simple majority to approve.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span>State Rep. Ed Lewis, a Moberly Republican, said amending the state constitution has become too easy and has been dominated by out-of-state interests. His proposal, he said, would address both of those issues.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span>\u201cThere should be a broad consensus across the state to amend the constitution,\u201d he said.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span>Democrats denounced both of the proposals as a power grab by the Republican supermajority and a <\/span><span>Trump-inspired assault on democracy.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p>\u201cThe Missouri GOP is aiding and abetting the systematic destruction of our democracy by an authoritarian regime led by geriatric conman who knows the only way he can win is to cheat,\u201d said House Minority Leader Ashley Aune, a Kansas City Democrat.<\/p>\n<p><span>GOP state Rep. Bryant Wolfin of Ste. Genevieve was one of the few Republicans who voted against both measures, saying this week\u2019s special session proves that the only thing that matters in the Missouri Capitol is \u201cpolitical power.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span>\u201cUnfortunately, it\u2019s not ethics,\u201d he said. \u201cIt\u2019s not morality. It\u2019s definitely not liberty. It\u2019s just political power.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n<p>If Democrats were in charge, Wolfin, said, he\u2019s sure they would do the same thing. But that doesn\u2019t justify what Republicans are doing.<\/p>\n<p><span>\u201cThere\u2019s certainly nothing conservative about ignoring the moral implications of our actions,\u201d he said. \u201cMorality is not defined by what is legal. Morality is not defined by what you can get away with.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n<p><strong>    <\/strong><\/p>\n<h4 class=\"editorialSubhed\">Gerrymandering<\/h4>\n<p>\t<\/p>\n<p><span>Revising congressional district lines occurs every 10 years, after the allocation of seats following the federal census. The Missouri Constitution mandates it but is silent on whether lawmakers have the power to do so at other times.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span>Democrats argue it is unconstitutional to draw another map before the next census is complete.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span>The <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.kcur.org\/politics-elections-and-government\/2025-09-04\/naacp-sues-missouri-republicans-unconstitutional-gerrymander-kansas-city\" target=\"_blank\"><span>Missouri NAACP filed a lawsuit last week<\/span><\/a><span> in Cole County arguing the governor\u2019s decision to call a special session was unconstitutional. Cleaver has also <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/missouriindependent.com\/briefs\/rep-emanuel-cleaver-promises-lawsuit-if-missouri-republicans-gerrymander-his-district\/\"><span>promised to go to court<\/span><\/a><span> to challenge any gerrymandered map lawmakers approve.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span>But Republicans say critics are misreading the constitution and are confident the new map would survive a legal challenge.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span>\u201cThe constitution is clear that we can alter districts as we desire at any point at any point,\u201d Deaton said.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span>Legislators were elected to represent the people, Deaton said, and if a majority of legislators vote in support of the map \u201cthat\u2019s representative democracy.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n<div class=\"fullwidth\"><\/div>\n<div>Source: U.S. Census Bureau. Basemap \u00a9 OpenStreetMap contributors \/ Map by Anna Sago<\/div>\n<p>\u00a0<\/p>\n<p><span>The new map does not include an emergency clause that would have made it go into effect upon Kehoe\u2019s signature. That means opponents of the map will have 90s days after it is signed into law to collect signatures to force a statewide vote.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span>St. Louis Public Radio reported Monday that <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.stlpr.org\/government-politics-issues\/2025-09-08\/missouri-redistricting-opponents-referendum\" target=\"_blank\"><span>the Missouri AFL-CIO is considering whether to launch a petition drive<\/span><\/a><span> to force a referendum vote. If enough signatures are gathered before the law takes effect, it would be held in abeyance until after the vote.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span>That strategy was last deployed in 2018, when <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.cnn.com\/2018\/08\/07\/politics\/missouri-right-to-work-vote\" target=\"_blank\"><span>labor unions collected more than 300,000 signatures in 90 days<\/span><\/a><span> \u2014 more than three times the amount needed \u2014 to put a question on the statewide ballot repealing a GOP-backed right-to-work law.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span>The repeal push was ultimately successful, with <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.npr.org\/2018\/08\/08\/636568530\/missouri-blocks-right-to-work-law\" target=\"_blank\"><span>67% of voters rejecting the right-to-work law<\/span><\/a><span>.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span>In fact, of the 27 times a referendum has been placed on the ballot, voters have rejected actions by the General Assembly all but twice.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><strong>    <\/strong><\/p>\n<h4 class=\"editorialSubhed\">Constitutional amendments<\/h4>\n<p>\t<\/p>\n<p><span>Missouri is<\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.ncsl.org\/elections-and-campaigns\/initiative-and-referendum-processes\" target=\"_blank\"><span> one of 24 states<\/span><\/a><span> that allows citizen initiative petitions. They can be used to either amend the constitution or change state law, though the path to successfully doing so is often <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/missouriindependent.com\/2023\/12\/05\/missouri-abortion-2024-initiative-petition-ballot\/\"><span>arduous and expensive<\/span><\/a><span>, requiring tens of thousands of signatures to even land on the ballot.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span>Missourians in recent years have used the initiative petition process to legalize abortion and recreational marijuana use, as well expand Medicaid eligibility.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span>In November, the abortion-rights amendment passed with just shy of 52% of the vote driven by large support from the state\u2019s urban, more-populated areas. Voters in all but eight of Missouri\u2019s 115 counties opposed the amendment.<\/span><\/p>\n<blockquote class=\"wp-embedded-content\" data-secret=\"iXzBBFtFUD\">\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/missouriindependent.com\/2025\/09\/04\/as-few-as-5-of-voters-could-defeat-initiative-petitions-under-missouri-gop-legislation\/\">As few as 5% of voters could defeat initiative petitions under Missouri GOP legislation<\/a><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p><span>Lewis argued Tuesday that the process is dominated by liberal, out-of-state organizations who are pushing partisan amendments that would be impossible to pass through the Republican-dominated legislature.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span>\u201cDo you want partisan things going into the constitution,\u201d Lewis said, \u201cor do we want something that a broad consensus of all Missourians could support.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span>State Rep. Martin Jacobs, a Democrat from Liberty, questioned why the process should be changed to allow a fraction of voters to sink an initiative petition, arguing it violates the principle of one person, one vote.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span>\u201cVoters in one district can override voters of every other district,\u201d Jacobs said.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span>Based on last year\u2019s general election, where 2,960,266 votes were cast for governor and only 311,915 in the 1st District, under the proposed change only 156,000 voters could defeat ballot question \u2014 or just shy of 5.3% of the statewide vote.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span>The GOP-backed legislation \u201crigs the system,\u201d said Democratic state Rep. Kathey Steinhoof of Columbia, \u201cand I assure you all Missourians on both sides of the aisle are tired of the system being rigged.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n<p><strong>    <\/strong><\/p>\n<h4 class=\"editorialSubhed\">On to the Senate<\/h4>\n<p>\t<\/p>\n<p><span>Both bills now head to the Missouri Senate, where Democrats are expected to use the filibuster and other procedural maneuvers to gum up legislative business as much as possible.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span>In order to overcome the gridlock, Senate Republicans may once again have to break a filibuster and force a vote by turning to a rule that was previously rarely-used but got deployed twice during the regular legislative session in May.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span>Doing so would create even more bad blood in a legislative chamber already teetering on the edge of full on partisan collapse. It could also upend the 2026 session before it even gets started.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span>Republican leaders in the Senate are determined to push both measures across the finish line.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span>\u201cThe map and the initiative petition reform measures will strike a huge blow to progressives and their efforts to turn Missouri into California,\u201d Senate President Pro Tem Cindy O\u2019Laughlin, a Shelbina Republican, <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/cindy.olaughlin\/posts\/pfbid037UKuVtbBEUmy8c1NQ8FPzChj5zeVoFpxBfC9DonvRBiZChHTzgYdQkiG9JdDRJcZl\" target=\"_blank\"><span>posted on social media<\/span><\/a><span>. \u201cWe are not California. We are not progressives.\u201d <\/span><\/p>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>House Speaker Jon Patterson presides over the final day of the 2025 legislative session on May 15 (Tim Bommel\/Missouri House Communications). Bills creating a gerrymandered congressional map and making it virtually impossible to change the state constitution through the initiative petition process are on their way to the Missouri Senate. The Missouri House gave final&#8230;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":4760,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_kadence_starter_templates_imported_post":false,"_kad_post_transparent":"","_kad_post_title":"","_kad_post_layout":"","_kad_post_sidebar_id":"","_kad_post_content_style":"","_kad_post_vertical_padding":"","_kad_post_feature":"","_kad_post_feature_position":"","_kad_post_header":false,"_kad_post_footer":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-4759","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-uncategorized"],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v27.7 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/product\/yoast-seo-wordpress\/ -->\n<title>Missouri House passes gerrymandered congressional map, limits on initiative petitions - WestplexNews.com<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/westplexnews.com\/index.php\/2025\/09\/09\/missouri-house-passes-gerrymandered-congressional-map-limits-on-initiative-petitions-2\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Missouri House passes gerrymandered congressional map, limits on initiative petitions - WestplexNews.com\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"House Speaker Jon Patterson presides over the final day of the 2025 legislative session on May 15 (Tim Bommel\/Missouri House Communications). 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Bills creating a gerrymandered congressional map and making it virtually impossible to change the state constitution through the initiative petition process are on their way to the Missouri Senate. The Missouri House gave final...","og_url":"https:\/\/westplexnews.com\/index.php\/2025\/09\/09\/missouri-house-passes-gerrymandered-congressional-map-limits-on-initiative-petitions-2\/","og_site_name":"WestplexNews.com","article_published_time":"2025-09-09T17:57:22+00:00","og_image":[{"url":"https:\/\/missouriindependent.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/05\/54521302847_26a750e7d0_k-1024x683.jpg","type":"","width":"","height":""}],"author":"Brad Hildebrand","twitter_card":"summary_large_image","twitter_misc":{"Written by":"Brad Hildebrand","Est. reading time":"7 minutes"},"schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"Article","@id":"https:\/\/westplexnews.com\/index.php\/2025\/09\/09\/missouri-house-passes-gerrymandered-congressional-map-limits-on-initiative-petitions-2\/#article","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/westplexnews.com\/index.php\/2025\/09\/09\/missouri-house-passes-gerrymandered-congressional-map-limits-on-initiative-petitions-2\/"},"author":{"name":"Brad Hildebrand","@id":"https:\/\/westplexnews.com\/#\/schema\/person\/86ac6e2a917ca881b22f6d55d1b955f0"},"headline":"Missouri House passes gerrymandered congressional map, limits on initiative petitions","datePublished":"2025-09-09T17:57:22+00:00","mainEntityOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/westplexnews.com\/index.php\/2025\/09\/09\/missouri-house-passes-gerrymandered-congressional-map-limits-on-initiative-petitions-2\/"},"wordCount":1317,"commentCount":0,"publisher":{"@id":"https:\/\/westplexnews.com\/#organization"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/westplexnews.com\/index.php\/2025\/09\/09\/missouri-house-passes-gerrymandered-congressional-map-limits-on-initiative-petitions-2\/#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/westplexnews.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/54521302847_26a750e7d0_k-1024x683-SiJe7C.jpg","inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"CommentAction","name":"Comment","target":["https:\/\/westplexnews.com\/index.php\/2025\/09\/09\/missouri-house-passes-gerrymandered-congressional-map-limits-on-initiative-petitions-2\/#respond"]}]},{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/westplexnews.com\/index.php\/2025\/09\/09\/missouri-house-passes-gerrymandered-congressional-map-limits-on-initiative-petitions-2\/","url":"https:\/\/westplexnews.com\/index.php\/2025\/09\/09\/missouri-house-passes-gerrymandered-congressional-map-limits-on-initiative-petitions-2\/","name":"Missouri House passes gerrymandered congressional map, limits on initiative petitions - 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