JEFFERON CITY, Mo. (AP) – Missouri’s Republican-led Legislature was poised to significantly relax the state’s gun laws and tighten its voting requirements as it prepared to convene Wednesday for a short session devoted to overriding vetoes made by Democratic Gov. Jay Nixon.
The sweeping guns legislation would allow most adults to carry concealed weapons without needing a permit while also expanding people’s right to defend themselves both in public and private places. The elections law change would require people to show a government-issued photo ID at the polls, if voters also approve a proposed constitutional amendment on the November ballot.
Both measures passed earlier this year with enough support for lawmakers to overturn Nixon if they stick to their original votes. A veto override requires a two-thirds majority in each chamber – 109 House votes and 23 Senate votes. Republicans control 114 House seats and 24 Senate seats.
The Republican supermajorities mean lawmakers have a good shot of adding to Nixon’s record as the most overridden governor in Missouri history, a distinction made possible by an era of extreme political division in the Capitol. Heading into Wednesday, lawmakers had overridden Nixon on 83 bills and budget expenditures over his two terms in office – four times more overrides than the combined total for all other governors dating back to 1820 when Missouri was still a territory.
Nixon vetoed more than 20 measures this year, including ones already overridden this spring blocking pay raises for home-care workers and changing the state’s school funding requirements.