93.9 The Eagle – The News and Talk of Columbia, MO
A Missouri Senate leader says congressional redistricting will be a top issue when state lawmakers return to Jefferson City in January.
Senate Majority Leader Caleb Rowden (R-Columbia) says U.S. Sen. Roy Blunt’s decision to not seek re-election led to a ripple effect.
“And all of the various dominoes that have happened and several members of the (state) Senate running for congressional seats. That probably also creates some different variables that obviously wouldn’t have existed otherwise,” Rowden says.
Senator Rowden spoke to guest host Travis Fitzwater on 939 the Eagle’s “Gary Nolan show.”
Missouri’s 2022 legislative session begins January 5. Leader Rowden also says education reform will be one of his top priorities in January.
“I think a lot of parents have always at a very surface level have said yes, I would like to have more control over my kid’s education. Now I think they’re living it out in a way that it really (is) igniting some passion,” says Rowden.
Columbia’s legislative delegation will again play key roles in 2022: Rowden is the powerful Senate Majority Leader, and State Rep. Chuck Basye (R-Rocheport) chairs the House Elementary and Secondary Committee. State Rep. Martha Stevens (D-Columbia) is the House Special Committee on Criminal Justice’s rankling Democrat.
