Local district likely to grow geographically with Congressional seat's loss

Tuesday's bombshell Census Bureau announcement that Missouri must relinquish one of its nine congressional seats next year means the 4th District, which includes Vernon County, will be a good deal bigger when redistricting is completed, officials said.

That's because the population of the 25-county district, represented by Harrisonville Republican Vicky Hartzler, will have to be increased from 630,000 to 750,000.

The redistricting chairman in the State House of Representatives in Jefferson City, Rep. John Diehl, said the process will cause two of the state's current members of Congress to be "paired" in the next election, running against each other, assuming they all seek new terms.

However, the Town and Country Republican said Tuesday that speculation that St. Louis Democrats William Lacy Clay Jr. and Russ Carnahan will be the woeful pair might not pan out.

Noting Missouri's 7-percent gain since 2000 to 5,988,927 citizens was insufficient to avoid the calamity, Diehl said, "It was one of those things we suspected was going to happen, but it's still disappointing.

"It's just speculation that Lacy Clay and Carnahan will be paired. We won't know what the maps look like till we get the numbers and facts over the next 60 days on where everybody actually lives.

"Based on the hearings we have on communities of interest, we'll draw a map that fairly represents everybody. But if everyone runs, there will be two congressmen who live in the same district. There's no way to avoid it."

Asked if the 4th District will get larger, Diehl said that spreading the population of nine districts among eight and boosting their average constituency to 750,000 will give all of them more territory.

State Rep. Barney Fisher, R-District 125, said Tuesday that the job could be painful with the possibility of judges stepping in if a compromise isn't reached. "Once we get the data, we will have to have a plan in place fairly quickly," Fisher said.

Missouri's congressional delegation consists of Democratic Reps. Clay, 1st District; Carnahan, 3rd; and Emanuel Cleaver of Kansas City, 5th; and Republicans Akin, 2nd; Hartzler, just having beaten Democrat Ike Skelton, 4th; Sam Graves Jr. of Kansas City, 6th; Billy Long of Springfield, 7th; Jo Ann Emerson of Cape Girardeau, 8th; and Blaine Luetkemeyer of St. Elizabeth in Miller County, 9th.

Democratic Gov. Jay Nixon, who could veto the plan, said Tuesday that the process "must move forward openly, transparently and fairly."

With 26 Republicans to eight Democrats, the Missouri Senate will be veto-proof next year; however, the House, with a 106-57 advantage for the GOP, will be three votes short of that ability.

Hartzler said initial Census reports "indicated it would go right down to the wire as population trends gave a number of states additional seats in the 435-member U.S. House in Washington.

"Sadly, Missouri is among the states that will lose representation," she said in a news release. "We expect the Missouri legislature to work hard and give thorough consideration to redrawing the congressional districts and ensure the citizens of the 4th District and the rest of the state are fairly represented on Capitol Hill."

The 96th Missouri General Assembly and 112th Congress will convene Jan. 5.

Akin characterized the news as "a disappointment for Missourians.

"That said, I'm confident the Missouri legislature will be committed to a redistricting process that is both fair and transparent, ensuring fair representation for all Missourians," Akin said.

Missouri's 4th District currently encompasses the counties of Barton, Bates, Benton, Camden, Cedar, Cole, Dade, Dallas, Henry, Hickory, Johnson, Laclede, Lafayette, Moniteau, Morgan, Pettis, Pulaski, Ray, Saline, St. Clair, Vernon and Webster and parts of Cass, Jackson and Polk counties.