Missouri constitution

Proponents of eliminating Missouri’s individual income tax, including Gov. Mike Kehoe, say it will make the state more competitive and appealing for businesses and people looking to move to the state. But opponents say that hiking sales taxes will impose more costs on lower-income residents.

Despite the potential high costs, Republicans on a Senate committee advanced the plan on a party-line vote Monday. The bill would place an amendment on the statewide ballot later this year asking voters permission to eliminate the income tax and expand sales taxes.

Gov. Mike Kehoe signed a law last year that took direct control of the police department away from the mayor’s office and shifted it to a board mostly appointed by the governor. It's similar to the system in place in Kansas City, which itself has been the subject of multiple lawsuits.

Missouri Attorney General Catherine Hanaway told KCUR’s Up To Date that she believes Missouri voters don’t have the authority to block the newly drawn congressional map through a referendum. “I think we know for 2026 what the congressional districts are,” Hanaway said. Legal challenges are still underway.

The constitutional amendment would establish that access to public education is a "fundamental right." But organizers say the controversy over the Missouri Secretary of State's ballot language, which a judge ruled was unfair and had to be rewritten, delayed signature collection.

What does “when” mean? The definition became a key part of a ruling that impacts the 2026 election by allowing new Republican-favoring congressional districts to stand.

The activists who tried and failed to defeat Missouri's 2024 abortion-rights amendment have regrouped under a new PAC called“Her Health, Her Future." They're betting that more time, tighter coordination and earlier backing from top Missouri Republicans can help them pass an abortion ban measure this fall.

Missouri's highest court ruled 4-3 that lawmakers were allowed to undergo mid-decade redistricting. But that does not necessarily mean the map passed last year will be in place for the 2026 election, as opponents continue to pursue a referendum.

Cole County Judge Brian Stumpe removed some of Secretary of State Denny Hoskins' phrases describing the old and new redistricting plans — calling them argumentative and "likely to create prejudice."

The November amendment would prohibit most abortions in the state, overturning a 2024 vote to protect abortion rights. But two-thirds of surveyed Missouri voters also say they support banning gender-affirming care for minors, which is also included in the ballot question.

The Republican-drawn congressional map divides Kansas City into three districts, and lumps the urban core with rural communities 200 miles away. While the map was upheld by a Jackson County judge, multiple other lawsuits against Missouri's mid-decade redistricting have yet to be decided.

A similar version of this bill was thrown out by the Missouri Supreme Court in January because of an unrelated item. Before it was struck down, that new process was put to the test over a proposed constitutional amendment to ban most abortions.