Early Wednesday morning, Democrats in the Missouri Senate set a new record for the longest filibuster in state history.
The caucus of nine Democrats initiated the round-the-clock filibuster on Monday evening, and have blocked activity in the chamber since then.
The standstill is over GOP-led legislation that would make it tougher for Missourians to change the constitution through the initiative petition process.
State Sen. Lauren Arthur, a Democrat from Kansas City’s Northland, is one of the Democrats carrying out the historic filibuster. Arthur told KCUR’s Up To Date Wednesday that she’s slept about four hours in the past two days — but the effort is worth it.
“We are protecting the idea of one person one vote, which is so foundational, so fundamental for our democracy. So it is a worthy cause that we're happy to fight for,” Arthur said.
This year’s session ends at 6 p.m. on Friday.
