JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. – Earlier today, the Missouri Senate voted to redraw a new district map intended to dilute Black voting power in Kansas City and across the state of MIssouri. The plan now awaits Governor Mike Kehoe’s approval. Kehoe held a special session adhering to President Trump’s request to redraw the state’s congressional map.
Redrawing district boundaries is typically done every 10 years, after the U.S. Census. The process is done to reflect population changes and to ensure population is roughly equal across districts. It is a requirement per the U.S. Constitution. Redrawing district lines mid-decade, however, is not a requirement. And when district lines are tampered with to determine the outcome of voting elections that is called gerrymandering.
The redrawn district map largely targets district 5 which is represented by Democratic Congressman Emanuel Cleaver. The district has a population over 750,000 with Black voters making up roughly 22% of that population. The redrawn map would essentially dilute Black voting power by “cracking” the population and reassigning voters to other districts.
Far-right conservatives argue that since Missouri historically votes conservative at the state level, then that should also be represented at the federal level. Opposing Legislators arguing that redistricting mid-decade goes against the MIssouri Constitution and diminishes the voting power of Black voters, a direct violation of the voting rights act of 1965.
Trump and his supporters are moving forward regardless and Missouri is not the only target. Texas and California have already ushered in partisan gerrymandering in hopes of sending more of their states conservative legislators to the U.S. Congress. Ohio, Indiana, and Florida are expected to follow suit.
This is a developing story.
