Sam Graves

Missouri’s 2026 election cycle got a jolt last week when longtime Republican U.S. Rep. Sam Graves announced his retirement. His departure could tell us a lot about where the GOP stands going into the midterm elections — and could make the 6th Congressional District race a lot more competitive.

The Tarkio Republican is the latest GOP House incumbent to end a reelection campaign. Under Missouri's new congressional map, there's a lot more of Kansas City included in the 6th District, although it still heavily favors Republicans.

Retiring Congressman Sam Graves endorsed Chris Stigall, a nationally syndicated talk radio host, to replace him. But that brought a fiery response from Kansas City Councilman Nathan Willett, who dropped out of a race for an open state Senate seat to file for Congress.

Candidates are filing to represent Kansas City with a run for Missouri's 4th, 5th and 6th districts under a redrawn congressional map. Kansas City Mayor Quinton Lucas won't be among them.

Graves, 62, has represented Missouri’s 6th District since 2001. A state lawmaker, a nationally syndicated radio host and a Kansas City Council member are among the possible candidates for the Republican nomination.

The United States and Israel attacked Iran on Saturday with multiple airstrikes, with an Israeli airstrike killing Iranian supreme leader Ali Khamenei. President Trump has long called for regime change and decried the threat of Iran's nuclear capability.

The House of Representatives narrowly rejected a bipartisan aviation safety bill that was spurred by the deadly midair collision of a Kansas flight near Washington, D.C. Missouri Rep. Sam Graves blasted it as an "unworkable government mandate."

Missouri and Kansas officials in Congress spoke out about the overnight raid in Venezuela and capture of President Nicolas Madura by the Trump administration.

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.

Rep. Sam Graves of Tarkio is trying to pass a major overhaul of the Federal Emergency Management Agency, including taking it out of the purview of the Department of Homeland Security.

Democratic state Sen. Patty Lewis of Kansas City says a special session on congressional redistricting could backfire on Republicans in a number of ways.

The agriculture industry has been among the hardest hit by President Trump's tariff agenda. Still, Rep. Sam Graves, a farmer and the U.S. Representative for Missouri's 6th Congressional District said he thinks farmers support the president's actions.