Overview

• Gov. Mike Kehoe signed the “Missouri First Map” on Sept. 28, reconfiguring Rep. Emanuel Cleaver’s Kansas City–area district by adding Republican-leaning rural territory and splitting parts of the city.
• The National Redistricting Foundation filed a new suit Monday, bringing at least four challenges that argue Missouri’s constitution does not permit mid‑decade redistricting and that the plan violates compactness rules.
• Earlier lawsuits by the NAACP and ACLU also contest the special session’s legitimacy and cite issues including a Kansas City precinct listed in two districts and the use of historic racial dividing lines such as Troost Avenue.
• The DNC announced its largest redistricting outlay this cycle to help collect roughly 110,000–117,000 valid signatures by Dec. 11 to force a statewide vote, which would suspend the map if the petition is certified.
• Unless a court or referendum intervenes, the law takes effect Dec. 11 for the 2026 cycle, and analysts say the new lines are likely to shift Missouri’s U.S. House delegation from 6–2 to about 7–1 in favor of Republicans.