The Missouri Senate's first day of a redistricting and initiative petition special session got off to a rocky start on Wednesday after Republicans employed a rarely utilized maneuver to approve the rules.
Wednesday marked the first day senators gaveled into session since Gov. Mike Kehoe called lawmakers back to Jefferson City last week. They'll soon take up a redistricting plan that converts Congressman Emanuel Cleaver's Kansas City-based district into a GOP-leaning seat and a proposal requiring some constitutional amendments to pass with a statewide vote and in all eight congressional districts. The House passed both Tuesday.
While both of those measures are expected to pass the Senate by Friday, Senate Democrats do have the power to slow down proceedings with a filibuster. Senate President Pro Tem Cindy O'Laughlin, R-Shelbina, offered changes to the Senate rules to move the special session bills through the process more quickly.
That prompted furious objections from Democrats, who contended that Republicans were trying to fast track two pieces of legislation that have elicited controversy and even faced opposition from prominent GOP members of the House.
"It's crazy to think that there's not going to be free and fair debate," said Senate Minority Leader Doug Beck, D-Affton.
Ultimately, Republicans used what's called a previous question motion that cuts off debate to pass the rules. That maneuver is generally used sparingly, though GOP lawmakers are expected to use it later this week to stop a filibuster and send the new map to Kehoe and the initiative petition proposal to voters.
The decision to use the procedure left Democrats exasperated. During a roll call vote, the presiding officer, Sen. Jason Bean, R-Holcolb, called for order, which prompted Sen. Karla May, D-St. Louis, to reply: "We don't have any rules. How can we get order if there's no rules?"
Sen. Maggie Nurrenbern, D-Clay County, derisively referred to Bean as "Mr. Speaker" – a reference to how the Missouri House routinely cuts debate off to pass legislation quickly. Bean then quickly gaveled Nurrenbern down, saying, "There are no speakers in the Senate."
Before Republicans forced a vote on the rules, Sen. Stephen Webber, D-Columbia, said Senate leaders were setting a precedent not just for Democrats but also for GOP senators who vote against the party line.
"You don't think when it gets inconvenient, when you have an opinion that the leadership disagrees with, that you aren't going to be silenced too?" Webber said. "And I can tell by the fact a lot of you don't want to look at me, I would say that we are standing up and fighting for your right now as well. I would ask that you stand up and fight for yourself."
Fallout could last beyond 2025
Even though Republicans have the ability to use the previous question to get the redistricting and special session items over the finish line, it may come with a price: problems in the 2026 legislative session.
Democrats were already promising retribution at the end of the 2025 regular session after GOP senators forced votes on measures taking aim at voter-approved paid sick leave and abortion rights initiatives. And pushing the redistricting and initiative measures through could incentivize Democrats to cause mundane business to creep to halt next year or refuse to cooperate on measures that need Democratic votes like the state budget.
"They're cheating here in this building in order to get their overall cheating agenda done with rigging the maps," said Sen. Patty Lewis, D-Kansas City.
At least one Republican, Sen. Joe Nicola, R-Independence, said he also worried about how the special session could affect next year.
"This chamber should be very thoughtful and deliberate," Nicola said. "We should have some honest debate."
Republican Sen. Brad Hudson, R-Cape Fair, said that while filibusters are a way of life in the Senate, the majority also holds the option to end them.
"There's another side of that coin," Hudson said. "The rules allow for filibustering, but when you get to where you're filibustering for hours on end, there should be an opportunity to stop the filibuster as well and do the people's work."
He also said he hoped that the Senate would be able to function normally once the special session ends.
"I would hope that going forward, regardless of how this week goes, that any disagreements that we have in the Missouri Senate would be over policy and not personality," Hudson said.
Making it harder to pass amendments
Hudson will be handling the proposal to make it more difficult to pass some constitutional amendments. It would not apply to amendments put on the ballot by the legislature, which would only need a majority of the statewide vote and not in all eight congressional districts.
"At the end of the day, both processes allow for broad support throughout the entire state, because you've got senators and representatives that have been voted on throughout the entire state," Hudson said. "You've got a committee process that the legislation has to go through. So when you consider the legislative process and how unique it is compared to the citizen-led process, both of these processes are a good way to get a feel for what the citizens of Missouri want."
Democrats have assailed the dual standard as a way to give the legislature significantly more power to alter the constitution at the expense of initiative petitions that need thousands of signatures to go before voters.
"I believe that this particular proposal is a good proposal," Hudson said. "I believe it is a proposal that will protect Missouri's constitution, and I believe it is a proposal that should stand up in court."
Even if the redistricting proposal passes, voters may end up getting the final say on whether it goes into effect.
If redistricting opponents can gather a little over 100,000 signatures the measure could go up for a statewide vote. It wouldn't be allowed to go into effect until Missourians approve it.
Questioning redistricting
Some Senate Democrats said the redistricting plan that divides Kansas City into three GOP-leaning congressional districts is unconstitutional and unpopular. They also say it's a misplaced priority.
"Republicans know that voters are mad, so now the same Republicans are trying to change the rules of the game," Nurrenbern said.
Hudson, though, said the new map reflects a Missouri that's become much more Republican over the past few election cycles.
"My desire is to craft a map that matches Missouri values, that will put us in a position where we are sending folks to represent us in Washington, D.C., that will do what Missourians want them to do and that is to push back against the radical agenda that many of the Democrats in D.C. are pushing."
A Senate committee is expected to take up the redistricting bill and the initiative petition ballot item on Thursday morning.
Copyright 2025 St. Louis Public Radio
