Missouri GOP Gov. Mike Kehoe signed his state’s new congressional map into law last month, but it is far from a done deal.
Some Republicans are growing concerned that Democrats may be on the verge of success in their Hail Mary attempt to block the new map from going into effect for the midterms.
If Democrats can get roughly 110,000 valid signatures by mid-December, they can trigger a referendum on the new map next year. That likely would save Rep. Emanuel Cleaver (D-Mo.) for at least two more years and longer if voters reject the proposal. The new GOP-drawn map turns Cleaver’s Kansas City-based seat deep red.
This is a tough goal for Democrats for a few reasons. They have a tight timeline. And they’ll need far more than the required number of signatures because many of these will be tossed out as invalid.
But Republicans in Washington and Missouri say the Democratic signature-gathering effort is well-funded and organized. And some fear it might just work. Democrats report that they’re hitting their daily quotas.
Yet even if they get the signatures, it could still be a brutal battle to convince voters in a red state to reject a map endorsed by President Donald Trump. And it will be expensive; just look at California.
Indiana. Vice President JD Vance is going back to the Hoosier State on Friday in the clearest sign yet that the White House’s ongoing push to get state legislators to redistrict is stalling.
GOP Gov. Mike Braun has been publicly supportive of the effort in recent weeks. But he hasn’t called a special session for Indiana legislators to draw a new map.
“It’s just starting to show where there may be some risk-averseness in the… state Senate,” Rep. Marlin Stutzman (R-Ind.) told us. “I hear from House members that they’re willing for the most part. But I think that’s where the Senate leadership needs to really step up and support President Trump.”
Vance will need to make clear that the White House is serious about pushing through a new map, and those who resist could face political ramifications.
California. The roadblocks in Indiana and Missouri are compounded by mounting fears that Republicans will not be able to block Democrats’ redistricting ballot measure in California.
To aid that effort, Speaker Mike Johnson recently transferred $1 million to the California GOP from his various fundraising committees. The Congressional Leadership Fund, a super PAC with close ties to Johnson, also gave an additional $5 million to block the measure. The state GOP does not typically run TV ads but handles a lot of GOTV.
