Trump’s gerrymandering blitz reaches Missouri: Does state law even allow it?
Hello, Star readers,
Today, we’re diving into behind-the-scenes conversations between state officials about whether a Texas-like redistricting blitz can be legally justified in Missouri.
Next, we’ll get into:
• KU fraternities: Three KU fraternities suspended in 2022 over toxic hazing cultures have been reinstated. But two of them never really shut down in the first place.
• On to Topeka: An incoming Wyandotte County lawmaker said she won’t resign as the mayor of a town near KCK. “A lot of people assume that the mayor’s role is like 40 hours a week,” she said, calling the job “very part-time.”
This week in politics
Gov. Mike Kehoe has remained noncommittal on the brazenly political push to redraw Missouri’s Congressional maps mid-decade, likely dividing Kansas City.
But emails obtained by The Star show state government officials and the governor’s top advisors have been weighing their legal options as Kehoe mulls calling a special session.
In a July 30 email titled “Missouri census laws related to redistricting,” Matt Hesser, the state’s demographer, sent a series of state and federal laws regarding redistricting to budget director Dan Haug.
Legal experts say depending on how Missouri goes about it, efforts to gerrymander Congressional maps five years out from the last Census could be fraught.
Chuck Hatfield, a Jefferson City-based attorney heavily involved in state government issues, said maps based on old population data that don’t accurately represent people could provoke a constitutional challenge.
“That’s one reason the Missouri Constitution limits redistricting to only once every 10 years,” said Hatfield, who previously worked in the Missouri Attorney General’s Office. “The state’s own data shows that the population has shifted since 2020, so the data they plan to use will be incorrect.”
Gabby Picard, a Kehoe spokesperson, said no decision has been made about whether a special session will be called, but that any redistricting effort would rely on 2020 Census data.
More from this past week
• A Johnson County police department enlisted ICE to question a City Councilwoman’s immigration status. Why was that their first step?
• The selection of Catherine Hanaway as Missouri’s next attorney general marks a political homecoming of sorts for the former federal prosecutor.
• Jackson County Executive Frank White Jr. says he plans to retire next year. What happens if voters choose to recall him?
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That’s all for now! See you next week.
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