Another State Prepares For Congressional Redistricting Special Session

Kansas lawmakers met Monday to approve $460,000 in taxpayer dollars to cover an anticipated special session to redistrict the state’s congressional map.

The Sunflower State currently has three Republicans and one Democrat in its congressional delegation.

It’s believed a new congressional map in Kansas will increase the odds of flipping the lone Democrat seat in Kansas to Republican.

BREAKING: Kansas Republican lawmakers have just officially GREENLIT a special session to draw out the last remaining Democrat Congressional district ahead of the 2026 midterms

That’ll be a solid +1 for GOP.

And they’re not the only one.

Red states must push FULL STEAM AHEAD… pic.twitter.com/gve7q8HmM7

— Eric Daugherty (@EricLDaugh) October 14, 2025

“Republican leadership just appropriated $460,000 from the state general fund for a redistricting special session that Kansans are not calling for,” state Sen. Dinah Sykes (D-Lenexa) said, according to WIBW.

“It is clear that Republicans are not focused on the kitchen table issues that Kansans care about. Instead of helping, for example, the 1200 seniors who’ve just been waitlisted for Meals on Wheels in Johnson County due to Republican federal cuts, they’ve opted to spend almost half a million of Kansas taxpayer dollars on a political stunt,” she added.

Kansas lawmakers have approved a budget to fund a special legislative session focused on Redistricting Per KSNT pic.twitter.com/IySYGzkq79

— OSZ (@OpenSourceZone) October 14, 2025

WIBW shared more:

Senate President Ty Masterson said during the meeting that the legislature is simply preparing for the expected.

“We’re preparing for what might be,” Sen. Masterson said. “If it’s not, if ultimately, we end up not using it, it just lapses back. We’re at this point preparing for what is likely to happen. I anticipate that to be more than sufficient for the days we’ll be here for special session.”

Sen. Masterson has previously called the redistricting effort a “serious endeavor” that is part of President Trump’s work to ‘Make America Great Again.’

The effort follows North Carolina lawmakers’ announcement of a plan to redraw its congressional map, which could yield an additional House seat for Republicans.

Republicans In Battleground State Announce Plan To Redraw Congressional Map, Expected To Add One House Seat

Rep. Sharice Davids (D-KS), who represents a district that includes most of the Kansas side of the Kansas City metropolitan area, is the lone Democrat in the state's congressional delegation.

Davids was first elected in 2018 and became the first Democrat to represent a Kansas congressional district in a decade.

Kansas Reflector noted:

A comparable effort by legislative leaders in Kansas to weaken Davids’ prospects of winning in 2026 would likely involve undercutting the electoral influence of Johnson County voters. Splitting the county between two congressional districts and blending those areas with large contingents of Republicans would make it more difficult for Davids to prevail.

Johnson County has recently favored Democrats, including Davids and Gov. Laura Kelly. In 2022, Kelly won reelection with 49.5% of the statewide vote, but benefitted from a 59% margin in Johnson County. Secretary of state candidate Jeanna Repass and attorney general candidate Chris Mann, both Democrats, carried Johnson County in 2022, but lost those races when the statewide vote was tallied.

U.S. Sen. Roger Marshall, R-Kansas, said gerrymandering had been a reality in politics throughout his life.

“Most of the blue states are gerrymandered to the point that … I don’t know what else they could do to change the ratio,” he said. “The Democrats have always led in this gerrymandering.”

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