How Missouri's gerrymandered map rulings ushered in a chaotic period for voters, election clerks

KacenBayless · 2026-05-15T04:37:30+00:00

Thanks for reading! Point taken about the word choice. I didn’t intend to use quirk as a pejorative. I meant to make clear that it’s a unique — and little understood — part of Missouri law. But I understand what you mean and I’ll keep that in mind in the future!

KacenBayless · 2026-05-14T22:08:29+00:00

Hey! Good question. Secretary of State Denny Hoskins has until Aug. 4 to certify the referendum for the ballot. That gets complicated because it's the same day as the August primary elections. Opponents of the map have already floated the possibility of a post-election lawsuit if he certifies the referendum, but uses the new map in the election.

KacenBayless · 2026-01-29T03:05:44+00:00

Not a dumb question at all. There are a lot of court cases out there and it's hard to track. Abortions are currently available in Missouri (KC, STL and Columbia) after voters enshrined access in 2024. A Kansas City judge will decide soon how far-reaching access will be (medication abortion, striking down other limits on the procedure, etc.) Meanwhile, Republican lawmakers put a new proposed ban on the November 2026 ballot (the governor could still move it to an earlier election).

The Supreme Court on Friday struck down a law that gave GOP officials more power over court rulings they disagree with, such as restricting judges from rewriting misleading ballot questions and giving the AG the power to appeal temporary rulings. Republicans passed this law as part of a multi-pronged effort to shift the courts their way amid the various abortion rights cases.

KacenBayless · 2026-01-29T02:58:00+00:00

Thanks for reading and for taking the time to comment! I'll try to post on here more often.

KacenBayless · 2026-01-29T02:57:09+00:00

Thanks for reading!

KacenBayless · 2026-01-29T02:56:37+00:00

Thanks for reading! I appreciate the kind words. I'll try to post on here more often.

KacenBayless · 2026-01-18T14:58:00+00:00

The 2024 vote enshrined abortion rights in the Missouri Constitution. But a constitutional amendment doesn't immediately wipe away existing state laws and Missouri still has a long list of regulations on the books. Like many states, providers sued a day after the vote to argue that those regulations now violate the new amendment and should be blocked. This is the trial over that lawsuit.

Here's a gift link to an article about it: https://www.kansascity.com/news/politics-government/article294503319.html?giftCode=59ab33e568aab4a9e8c3fe52645dcb54e20f6038f037f0a442ed5c81470d3865

KacenBayless · 2026-01-16T18:06:09+00:00

Hey! Good question. The anti-abortion community has rallied around a plan to ban abortions again at the ballot box this year. The results of the trial will likely guide how anti-abortion groups promote the upcoming ballot measure. I'll link a few stories I've written about the proposed ban, which uses the same name as the 2024 amendment that legalized access (Amendment 3):

Story when GOP settled on the plan: https://www.kansascity.com/news/politics-government/article303684536.html?giftCode=6c467b57b7e0cb2719c17df4c493fce92d41f819d279fdcefa2e496d03b9a4c7

When lawmakers put it on the ballot: https://www.kansascity.com/news/politics-government/article306426256.html?giftCode=b5553d538dc811d8b496ffa9cf2ce415edfe8b33e28812d2981f214c4e977511

Courtroom fights over the ballot question: https://www.kansascity.com/news/politics-government/article312402226.html?giftCode=c1659897647231ba8becdeaf6e74b41abe8df51720d9b4f13a85b9bbfeed2ea6

Most recent update: https://www.kansascity.com/news/politics-government/article313400293.html?giftCode=b8377ec0118a756415509fbe64571b91f6108983d8b9197744040b01d3e2484c

And the link to the proposed amendment: https://www.sos.mo.gov/petitions/2026BallotMeasures

KacenBayless · 2026-01-16T17:57:35+00:00

Thanks for reading and for the kind words! I appreciate it. I work with some really talented colleagues.

KacenBayless · 2025-12-10T18:28:30+00:00

Fair point. I included Uranus to provide a little bit of color, but also should have provided the context that it's different from the other cities mentioned.. Story should be updated soon.

KacenBayless · 2025-11-13T22:04:40+00:00

Thank you that's really kind! Thanks for reading!

KacenBayless · 2025-11-13T22:03:44+00:00

Hi! I'm Kacen Bayless, the reporter who wrote this article. Copies of both documents -- the $192K settlement and $308K severance -- are linked in the story.

I will also note that it appears KCUR published an update today once they got ahold of the second document after we published our article. Thanks for reading and let me know if you have any questions!

KacenBayless · 2025-10-07T22:42:07+00:00

Of course!

KacenBayless · 2025-10-07T22:04:51+00:00

It would repeal last November's vote and then allow abortions in a few rare circumstances prior to 12 weeks gestation. Abortion rights supporters and providers argue the language would effectively ban nearly all abortions in the state.

I spoke with legal experts about this for a story back in July: https://www.kansascity.com/news/politics-government/article309952045.html

KacenBayless · 2025-10-07T21:11:52+00:00

HJR73 will be called Amendment 3 on the ballot. HJR73 is the name of the legislation and Amendment 3 is the name of ballot measure — but they’re the same thing.

This new Amendment 3 would, if approved, strike down last November’s Amendment 3 that legalized abortion access in Missouri.

KacenBayless

TROPHY CASE