TOPEKA, Kan. (AP) -- Secretary of State Kris Kobach plans to discuss legal issues surrounding redistricting before a debate in the Kansas Senate on a new plan for redrawing the chamber's 40 districts.

Kobach is the state's chief elections officer but also a former law professor. He planned a Tuesday news conference.

It was scheduled only hours before senators were to debate a new map favored by moderate Republicans. Majority Leader Jay Emler, a Lindsborg Republican, expects the plan to pass.

But passage probably wouldn't break a stalemate with GOP conservatives, who have a majority in the House and have blocked an earlier proposal for Senate redistricting.

The impasse threatens to delay the state's Aug. 7 primary election. Lawmakers must adjust political boundaries to account for changes in population over the past decade.