NEW: Red State Governor Calls Special Session To Redraw Congressional Maps

Missouri Governor Mike Kehoe a Republican, has officially ordered a special legislative session to redraw maps for the GOP-dominated state’s eight U.S. House seats. The move, which had long been hinted at by the governor, mirrors similar efforts in Texas and beyond as Republicans seek to keep control of the House next November.

On Friday, Kehoe announced that the General Assembly will be returning to the state capital in Jefferson City this coming Wednesday to consider a redraw. Under the current map, Republicans control six of eight available House seats.

A final proposition has not yet been released, though political analysts have long estimated that the GOP-controlled legislature will draw out at least one currently Democrat-controlled seat. This will likely be the state 5th Congressional District, a Kansas City area seat currently held by Rep. Emanuel Cleaver (D-MS).

A redraw is likely to pass, as Republicans currently hold a supermajority in both chambers of the state legislature. Redistricting efforts in the Show Me State will likely be met with legal challenges, however, as the state’s constitution requires new borders to be drawn after the results of the U.S. census are released, which will take place in 2030.

“Today, I am calling on the General Assembly to take action on congressional redistricting and initiative petition reform to ensure our districts and Constitution truly put Missouri values first,” Kehoe said in a statement. The governor also unveiled what he called the Missouri First Map, describing it as “a more compact, contiguous proposed map that was drawn and created by his team in Missouri to be considered by the General Assembly.”

The proposed map, the governor explained, splits fewer counties and municipalities when compared with the current boundaries. It will also preserve two districts as currently drawn and leaves each respective U.S. Representative in their current districts.

“Missourians are more alike than we are different, and our Missouri values, across both sides of the aisle, are closer to each other than those of the extreme Left representation of New York, California and Illinois,” Kehoe said. “Missouri’s conservative, common-sense values should be truly represented at all levels of government, and the Missouri First Map delivers just that.”

President Donald Trump — who has called on Republican-controlled states to redistrict in order to counter a “census error” that awarded Democrats more than 10 seats they should not currently hold — praised the decision in a Truth Social post.

“The Great State of Missouri is now IN. I’m not surprised. It is a great State with fabulous people,” the president wrote. “I won it, all 3 times, in a landslide. We’re going to win the Midterms in Missouri again, bigger and better than ever before!”

Kehoe’s announcement came just hours after Texas Governor Greg Abbott signed new congressional maps into law that will draw out five districts currently held by Democrats. Three of the districts have shifted to “safe Republican,” one to “likely Republican” and one “lean Republican,” under the new maps, according to the Cook Partisan Voting Index.

Florida Speaker of the House Daniel Perez also announced earlier this week that the state house will be forming a committee aimed at exploring redistricting. Sunshine State Republicans are hoping to draw out anywhere from three to five Democrat-controlled seats ahead of the 2026 midterm elections