Kansas Republicans do not have the votes to convene a special session that would draw the state’s lone House Democrat — Sharice Davids — out of office, state House Speaker Dan Hawkins said Tuesday.
It’s the latest roadblock in the White House’s aggressive push to redraw maps across the country in order to shore up Republicans’ tiny House majority ahead of the 2026 midterms.
“Planning a Special Session is always going to be an uphill battle with multiple agendas, scheduling conflicts and many unseen factors at play,” Hawkins said in a statement.
It doesn’t mean the effort is gone for good. Lawmakers could still take up the issue in January when they meet for the regular session — Hawkins’ press release was titled “Countdown to January 12th” — and the speaker said in his Tuesday statement that Republicans still “wish to have a conversation about redistricting.”
Kansas is not the first Republican-controlled state to hit redistricting roadblocks. A push in New Hampshire seems unlikely amid opposition from GOP Gov. Kelly Ayotte, while some state lawmakers are also resisting the pressure campaign from President Donald Trump in Indiana.
Republicans comfortably control both legislative chambers in Kansas. But Democratic Gov. Laura Kelly and the two-thirds majority needed to either call a special session without her permission or override her veto has been a stumbling block there.
Across the country, Republicans — starting with Texas — have redrawn maps that could net the party as many as nine seats. Voters in California appear likely to approve a counter that gives Democrats five seats, billed as a response to Texas. Virginia has started its own effort to redistrict, and Maryland and Illinois are facing increased pressure to pursue their own redraws.
In Kansas, Senate President Ty Masterson — who is running for governor — has said his caucus had the supermajority required to call the special session, circumventing Kelly.
“In 2016, 2020, and again in 2024, Kansans gave President Trump overwhelming support in record numbers, and they expect their elected leaders to keep fighting for his America-First agenda,” Masterson said in a statement, responding to Hawkins. “That’s exactly what we’ve done in the Senate, and that’s exactly what we’ll keep doing. We’re not backing down, and we’re not sitting out of this fight.”
But things have stalled in the House, where hesitant lawmakers have maintained they don’t see a reason to call a special and take up the effort.
“I’m not changing that viewpoint,” GOP state Rep. Mark Schreiber told POLITICO last month.
As Republicans mull drawing her out of her seat, Davids is actively considering a Senate run, meeting with Sen. Adam Schiff (D-Calif.) to talk through the logistics of a campaign, POLITICO reported Monday.
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