Congress

An attorney for Secretary of State Denny Hoskins told a judge that the original ballot summary for a referendum on Missouri's gerrymandered congressional map is “inherently argumentative” and should be revised

Missouri U.S. Rep. Emanuel Cleaver II joined Up To Date to discuss an ICE agent's killing of an observer in Minneapolis, the Trump administration's intervention in Venezuela, and a critical vote in Congress on Affordable Care Act subsidies.

The GOP senator joined Democrats and four other Republicans in voting to halt Trump's ability for military action in Venezuela without congressional approval. In contrast, other Missouri Republicans like Sen. Eric Schmitt stood behind Trump's decisions.

The U.S. Supreme Court appears ready to strike down parts of the Voting Rights Act that protects minority-majority congressional districts. Missouri Sen. Eric Schmitt said the St. Louis-based 1st Congressional District may be redrawn next.

The office of Attorney General Catherine Hanaway is arguing in court that Missouri's 2022 congressional map, which was drawn by the Republican-dominated legislature, should not have preserved a majority-Black district in the St. Louis area. But that argument may also hurt the GOP's newly-redrawn map as well.

Missouri doesn't have a marquee statewide race next year. But the results of some contests, including a Republican-written ballot measure to undo abortion rights, could be a big sign of a Democratic wave or continued GOP dominance.

Kansas Republican leaders couldn't rally enough support this fall for a special session on redistricting. It's just one example of lawmakers pushing back on a new round of partisan gerrymandering.

During the record-setting 43-day government shutdown, Missouri Republican Rep. Sam Graves said he got a lot of calls from air traffic controllers — who had to work without pay, despite already being overworked and understaffed. But another shutdown could just be a few months away.

Opponents argue the Missouri Constitution is clear that lawmakers can only redraw congressional maps after a certified census, while the state said nothing prohibits mid-decade redistricting.

The Republican senator said a bipartisan contingent of senators is trying to find a way to end the shutdown. But Schmitt is against extending Affordable Care Act tax credits that could prevent scores of people from losing health insurance — a major sticking point in negotiations.

As the government shutdown stretches its way into the record books, Americans are feeling its worsening impacts. Many of Kansas City's 30,000 federal employees remain furloughed or working without pay.

Unless courts intervene, it's looking more likely that Missouri voters will ultimately get to decide the fate of the GOP's congressional map — meaning the gerrymandered districts might not take effect for the 2026 election cycle.