Right now in Missouri, something absurd is happening: election officials are already mailing ballots to voters — and at the same time, the 8th Circuit Court of Appeals is weighing whether Missouri’s congressional map is even legal. Voters are being asked to cast ballots in districts a court might throw out.
This is what happens when politicians draw their own districts. The maps get challenged, the courts get dragged in, and regular working people are left wondering whether their vote even lands in the right race. It’s chaos — and it was completely avoidable.
Here’s my position, and it’s simple: the voters should pick their representatives — not the other way around. Gerrymandering is corruption with a map on it. It doesn’t matter which party does it. When politicians get to choose their voters, the voters lose every time.
When I’m in Congress, I’ll fight for three things on this:
One — independent redistricting commissions, not backroom deals by the politicians who benefit from the lines.
Two — no mid-decade redraws for partisan gain. Draw the map once, fairly, and leave it alone.
Three — maps settled before a single ballot is printed. No voter should ever cast a ballot in a district that’s still being litigated.
Missouri deserves better than courthouse maps and mailbox confusion. The 99% deserve a system where every vote counts — in the district they actually live in.
I’m Alexander Heidenreich. I’m for the 99 — not the map-makers.
Paid for by Alexander J.S. Heidenreich for Congress.