Missouri Black Caucus blasts GOP redistricting ploy – St. Louis American

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The Missouri Legislative Black Caucus said in a Monday release that it “strongly condemns” President Trump’s attempt to convince the Republican supermajority in the Missouri legislature to redraw the boundaries of Missouri’s 5th Congressional.
The district is represented by U.S. Rep. Rev. Emmanuel Cleaver II, who has served as its Kansas City-area congressman for more than 20 years.
The Black Caucus calls the move “egregious and politically motivated.”
“This isn’t about representation. It’s about damage control,” said Rep. Michael Johnson, chair of the Missouri Legislative Black Caucus.
“President Trump sees the writing on the wall and wants to rig the rules before voters have their say. Lawmakers in Missouri shouldn’t be complicit in that. Redrawing the 5th District now is a blatant attempt to hold onto power.”
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Redistricting occurs every 10 years following the national U.S. Census. Missouri’s congressional maps were redrawn in 2022. 
“To attempt to revisit those lines merely three years later—because the Republican Party is desperate to hold onto power in Congress—is a clear abuse of the process and a threat to democratic norms,” said Johnson.
“The Missouri Legislative Black Caucus calls on the Missouri General Assembly to reject this reckless demand and to protect the sanctity of the electoral process and the voice of Missouri voters.”
A similar battle is occurring in Texas where  Republicans are attempting to adopt a congressional map that would eliminate a majority-Black district represented by longtime Congressman Al Green.
It would also divide Black and Latino communities, diluting voting power in districts shared with majority white, Republican-leaning voters.
Four years ago, then-Texas state Rep. Jasmine Crockett, a St. Louis area native, was among Democratic state legislators who left the state to successfully prevent the passage of a voting restrictions bill.
The action prevented Republicans from holding a quorum—the needed number of lawmakers to conduct legislative business.
Now a congresswoman, Crockett encouraged Texas House Democrats as they too have left the state, with some now taking refuge in Chicago.
Gov. Greg Abbott has ordered the Democrats arrested. Crocket displayed her 2021 arrest warrant on social media and wrote, “Well as the song says, I’m still STANDING!,” telling her fellow Democrats, “When a bully punches you, you KNOCK THEM OUT!”
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Gilliam Nii Lighter

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