The debate surrounding the potential merger of St. Louis City and St. Louis County has resurfaced as State Rep. Ian Mackey proposes a consolidation that echoes past initiatives. According to a First Alert 4 report, Mackey has pre-filed House Joint Resolution No. 27, which if passed, would ask the voters of Missouri to decide on the merger in the 2026 General Election. The resolution suggests the formation of a "Metropolitan city of Saint Louis," with a Metro Council government uniting the two areas currently divided since 1876, an event historians know as “The Great Divorce.”
By taking up the Better Together plan's language, which stalled in 2019 due to various complications, including a scandal involving then St. Louis County Executive Steve Stenger, Mackey aims to streamline local governance. As per a statement obtained by FOX 2 Now, the legislation lays out a strategic vision for a merged political entity designed to enhance service delivery and reduce redundant functions across the region.
However, challenges remain as pointed out in a St. Louis Business Journal report. Republican supermajorities in the Missouri House and Senate pose a potential obstacle to the Democrat Representative's plan. Moreover, there's uncertainty about whether the merger would be prioritized by key Republican figures, despite the apparent need for a cohesive strategy in an area plagued by population decline and fragmentation.
"A city of one million people, with a unified focus with the elected officials on that council to pull the region in one direction, rather than 88 municipalities of the county and city working independently," Mackey told First Alert 4, highlighting the potential benefits of consolidation. Nonetheless, both St. Louis City Mayor Tishaura Jones and St. Louis County Executive Sam Page have expressed their satisfaction with the current level of collaboration between the city and county, leaving the necessity of a merger up for public debate.
Mackey's proposal, while again drawing attention, does not guarantee any immediate action. His acknowledgment that there are other bills he will prioritize more strongly than the merger plan suggests a realistic understanding of the political landscape and the complexities of unifying two historically separate entities. The conversation about St. Louis' future governance structure continues, with the potential for a historic change to be decided by Missouri's voters in a couple of years.
