Last week, the Kansas Reflector reported that Kansas state legislators — under pressure from Donald Trump — are pushing an unprecedented mid-decade redistricting scheme aimed at weakening Representative Sharice Davids’ (D-KS-03) district and silencing Kansas voters.
The article underscores how state politicians, reportedly eager to advance their own careers and secure Trump’s endorsement, are prepared to break their 2022 promise to keep Johnson County whole — a politically motivated move that would reduce Kansans’ voting power and deepen division in the state.
Read more in the Kansas Reflector: U.S. Rep. Sharice Davids views Kansas redistricting as polarizing, anti-democratic, by Tim Carpenter
Democratic U.S. Rep. Sharice Davids objected Friday to being targeted by Republicans eager to adopt a new congressional map for Kansas that divided Johnson County and further gerrymandered the state’s four districts.
A special session of the Kansas Legislature to consider changes advocated by President Donald Trump could follow the playbook used in Texas and Missouri. In both states, the GOP has moved to undermine Democratic strongholds to bolster the Republican majority in the U.S. House.
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“Politicians are once again focused on political games to benefit themselves and their extreme agenda, not hardworking Kansans,” Davids said. “Voters should pick their representatives, not the other way around, and this unprecedented step would only further polarize this country and harm our democracy.”
Davids was elected to the 3rd District seat in 2018 and earned reelection three times. Ahead of the 2022 election, the Legislature […] added a cluster of rural counties to improve the odds for Republican candidates.
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Trump urged states to manipulate congressional boundaries ahead of the 2026 midterm in an attempt to pad the thin GOP majority in the U.S. House.
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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.
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Former Kansas Gov. Jeff Colyer, who is seeking the GOP nomination for governor in 2026, said the Legislature ought to promptly redraw congressional boundaries to favor Republicans. It would demonstrate the state’s political support for Trump.
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Senate President Ty Masterson, an Andover Republican who is among more than a half dozen GOP candidates for governor, said a special session devoted to redistricting the state’s congressional districts was under discussion.
“I am actively engaged in the battle for the heart and soul of America, helping the president to Make America Great Again,” he said.
Three years ago, there was an effort by Masterson and other legislators to hold Johnson County together as a community of interest.
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“We don’t draw the maps on voters,” Masterson said at that time. “We draw the map on residents.”
Masterson also issued a statement that said the Legislature’s mapping resulted in “compact and contiguous districts,” and it “preserves existing district cores and groups together communities of interest.”
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House Minority Leader Brandon Woodard, a Lenexa Democrat, said interest among Republican candidates for governor to subvert the will of Kansas voters through redistricting was about landing Trump’s endorsement.
“The push for congressional redistricting is nothing more than a thinly veiled attempt to gain Trump’s favor and advance personal political ambitions,” Woodard said. “With so many Republican candidates now vying for governor, it’s clear that the race has become a contest to win Donald Trump’s endorsement.”