LAS VEGAS — Rep. Jason Smith (R-Mo.) is backing the White House’s campaign to redraw the congressional map in his home state so that Republicans will control seven of the eight seats.
Smith, a close ally of President Donald Trump, says he’s had conversations with the White House and the Missouri delegation about the effort. Smith’s also bullish GOP legislators back home will get on board.
“Missouri supports Republican priorities [and] President Trump,” Smith told us in an interview. “I welcome my state reps and senators making sure that we have a very good congressional map.”
The White House is urging Republicans to embark on a new redistricting effort targeting Democratic Rep. Emanuel Cleaver in Kansas City, as we scooped. That could net the GOP another House seat in Missouri, leaving Rep. Wesley Bell (Mo.) as the lone Democrat in the state.
It’s the latest redistricting effort from Trump’s political team. The White House pushed for new maps in Texas and is now looking to redraw district lines in more states ahead of next year’s midterms. Ohio has to redistrict by law ahead of 2026.
Here’s Smith, who chairs the Ways and Means Committee and holds Missouri’s spot on the influential House GOP Steering Committee, about the interest back home:
On the map. Smith said he believes a 7R-1D map is achievable for Republicans in Missouri. The state’s delegation currently has six Republicans and two Democrats.
“There’s some crazy jagged edges — in St. Charles County, in Clay and Jackson County near Kansas City,” Smith said. “And so I think that you could have a more compact map.”
Smith’s support, which has been echoed by Rep. Bob Onder (R-Mo.), is notable because the state’s GOP delegation will have to give up some of their GOP voters to add another red-leaning district.
But the most important approval will come from state legislators in Jefferson City. During the last redistricting, a conservative faction pushed hard for a 7-1 map but was thwarted.
Trump’s interest has spurred many of the key players to reconsider. Missouri Gov. Mike Kehoe would need to call a special session for the legislature to pass a new map.
The GOP’s case. Republicans are also looking to message their redistricting push by arguing Democrats have an outsize number of seats in some blue states. Meanwhile, Democrats are plotting their own efforts to hit back at what they see as a GOP power grab.
“They’ve already done it. We haven’t,” Smith said. “So it’s time for us to catch up.”
