COLUMBIA — A Cole County judge has sided with the state of Missouri in a ruling that affirms Gov. Mike Kehoe had the constitutional authority to call the special session that resulted in the passage of a new gerrymandered congressional map for Missouri. During the special session, legislators redrew the map to favor Republicans.
The Missouri NAACP filed the lawsuit against state officials including Gov. Mike Kehoe in September 2025 in an attempt to stop the special session from happening, but the court did not take up the case in time to stop legislators from meeting for the session.
The lawsuit alleged that while the Missouri Constitution allows the governor to call special sessions for extraordinary occasions, Kehoe's reasoning to call the most recent session did not qualify as an extraordinary occasion.
Judge Christopher Limbaugh disagreed, stating in the ruling issued Friday, that the governor has the constitutional discretion to decide what qualifies as an extraordinary occasion.
Article 4, Section 9 of the Missouri Constitution, which describes the powers of the governor, states that on extraordinary occasions, the governor may convene the General Assembly by proclamation and state matters for the legislature to take action on.
Kehoe called Missouri lawmakers to a special session on Aug. 29, 2025, directing them to focus the session on redistricting the state and changing the initiative petition process.
The new congressional map, which is at the center of multiple lawsuits, would likely give the Republican Party a 7-to-1 majority in Missouri's U.S. House seats. Republicans already hold six of Missouri's eight congressional seats.
