Missouri GOP enacts mid-decade congressional gerrymander targeting majority-Black Democratic seat

Missouri's Republican-controlled legislature enacts a new congressional map as part of the Trump-coordinated mid-decade redistricting wave, eliminating a majority-Black Democratic-held seat that was not protected by Section 2 of the Voting Rights Act. The new map is one of three early GOP gerrymanders — alongside Texas (2025) and North Carolina (October 2025) — that together add approximately nine Republican-leaning seats before the 2026 midterms. The Missouri map faces a veto referendum scheduled for the November 2026 ballot and multiple lawsuits. Democrats and voting rights groups argue the map deliberately cracks Black communities to dilute their political power. The redistricting follows direct pressure from President Trump, who pushed GOP-controlled states to redraw maps to preserve the party's narrow House majority. A subsequent analysis by Fair Fight Action and Black Voters Matter finds that the 2025–26 GOP redistricting wave could ultimately yield 27 additional safe Republican seats, with 19 tied directly to the dismantling of VRA protections.