(The Center Square) – Republican Gov. Mike Parson signed House Bill 2909 into law today, approving a new map with boundaries for Missouri’s eight congressional districts.

Missouri was one of the last states to redraw its map as required after each U.S. Census. It maintains the same geographic areas for six congressional seats favorable to Republicans and two for Democrats, the St. Louis and Kansas City metropolitan areas.

Legislators drew hundreds of maps during its 2022 session, which ended last Friday. The Missouri Constitution requires congressional maps to consist of districts equal in population and contiguous boundaries.

The map was approved on a 114-34 vote in the House and sent to the Senate on May 9. However, many members criticized boundaries splitting counties and cities. The Senate’s conservative caucus contended the state’s political makeup would be more representative with a map favorable to seven Republican seats and one Democrat – St. Louis. The conservative caucus relented on May 12 when realizing it couldn’t stop an impending procedural move to approve the map.

“Today, we signed into law a congressional map that meets our constitutional requirements,” Parson said in a statement. “This past session, we saw a few individuals’ political posturing obstruct key pieces of priority legislation and promote inefficient and ineffective government. It’s unfortunate so much time and productivity were lost just to receive a map with the same partisan split that was proposed six months ago. These past months could have been better used by county clerks implementing a new map and preparing for upcoming elections.”