Democrats broke Republican supermajorities in both chambers of the Missouri Legislature in Tuesday’s 2026 midterm elections, flipping 16 House seats and two Senate seats, ending more than a decade of unchecked Republican control at the Capitol in Jefferson City, the Missouri Independent and the DLCC reported.
Republicans still hold majorities in both chambers. They can still write budgets, pass laws and set the agenda without a Democratic vote, the Missouri Independent reported.
They can no longer override vetoes without support from across the aisle, the Missouri Independent reported. The Missouri Independent reported that they also cannot use emergency clauses to make most new laws take effect at once.
The Missouri Legislature after the vote
In the House, Democrats flipped 16 seats and won 68 of 163 seats. That left Republicans with 95, according to the Missouri Independent.
Republicans flipped no House seats, and no Democratic incumbent lost, Griffon News reported.
In the Senate of the Missouri Legislature, Democrats won the two seats they needed to end the Republican supermajority, the Missouri Independent reported. Representative Keri Ingle defeated House Speaker Jon Patterson in the 8th District in eastern Jackson County, Griffon News reported.
Representative Betsy Fogle won the 30th District seat in Springfield, according to Griffon News.
Fogle defeated Republican Melanie Stinnett in the Springfield race, the Missouri Independent reported. She is the first Democrat to win the seat in more than 80 years, the outlet reported.
Heather Williams, president of the Democratic Legislative Campaign Committee, called the result a decisive victory. She also called it a game-changer for the balance of power in the state, the DLCC said.
In a statement on November 4, the committee said the gains would give Democrats a check on Republican power. It said they would also help shape the rules for voting rights and redistricting.
Democrats won nearly every Republican-held district they targeted and scored unexpected victories in Republican strongholds, the Missouri Independent reported.
House Republican candidates and allied groups raised $17.7 million. House Democrats and allied groups raised $7.1 million, the Missouri Independent reported.
A long Republican run ends
Republicans had held a House supermajority in the Missouri Legislature since 2012, the Missouri Independent reported. Democrats won a House majority in every election from 1954 to 2000.
Republicans have won a majority in every election since, the outlet reported.
Missouri was part of a wider Democratic night across the country. Democrats also won a majority of US governorships for the first time since 2010, and Wisconsin Democrats flipped their state legislature to complete a trifecta after 16 years.
The new House of the Missouri Legislature will have 95 Republicans and 68 Democrats when it convenes in January, the Missouri Independent reported. Republicans still hold the majority in both chambers, so Democrats remain in the minority despite the gains, the outlet reported.
