Utah has a new congressional map after a state judge late Monday night rejected a proposal from Republican state legislators and instead chose one that would give Democrats a prime pickup opportunity in next year’s midterm elections.
Plaintiffs in the case had argued that Utah’s current GOP-drawn map did not comply with state law that allows for an independent redistricting process. On an order by Judge Dianna Gibson, Republican state legislators approved new lines last month that would have left their party favored in all four of Utah’s congressional districts but given Democrats a chance to flip at least one of them.
Gibson instead opted for a map proposed by the plaintiffs, which would create a new Salt Lake City-based seat, numbered the 1st District, that Kamala Harris would have carried by 24 points last year, according to calculations by Inside Elections with Nathan L. Gonzales.
Gibson issued the ruling just before a midnight deadline. Lt. Gov Deidre Henderson had said a map needed to be in place by Nov. 10 so state and county officials could start planning for the 2026 elections. Henderson said early Tuesday that her office would comply with Gibson’s order unless otherwise instructed by an appeals court.
The campaign arm of House Democrats hailed the ruling as a “victory for every Utahn who believes voters — not politicians — should decide who their representatives are.”
“By rejecting a partisan, gerrymandered map, Utah’s Third District Court reaffirmed that power should firmly belong to the people,” Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee Chair Suzan DelBene of Washington said in a statement.
Former Rep. Ben McAdams, the last Democrat elected to Congress from Utah, is reportedly considering running again and has support from Welcome PAC, which supports moderate Democrats. McAdams, a former Salt Lake County mayor, unseated Republican Mia Love in 2018 in what was then the battleground 4th District, but lost to Republican Burgess Owens two years later.
The chairman of the Utah Republican Party slammed Gibson’s ruling, saying she “once again exceeded the constitutional authority granted to Utah’s judiciary.”
“Utahns deserve maps drawn by those they elect, not judges or activist plaintiffs who never faced the voters,” party chairman Robert Axson said in a statement. He called for a full repeal of Proposition 4, the 2018 ballot initiative approved by state voters to create an independent redistricting process. Efforts are currently underway to collect signatures to put a repeal on the ballot next year, The Salt Lake Tribune reported earlier this month.
The latest developments from Utah come as both parties have engaged in redistricting efforts that have in part reshaped the battleground for next year’s midterm elections. At Trump’s urging, Republicans jump-started the process by redrawing the congressional map in Texas, and GOP-led Missouri and North Carolina have since followed suit. Ohio’s redistricting commission approved a new House map late last month as required under state law. Collectively, the four states could help Republicans pick up as many as nine seats. Redistricting is also on the table in GOP-run Indiana, where state legislators are expected to convene next month.
Democrats in California responded to Texas’ move by passing a new map — approved by state voters in a referendum last week — that could help the party flip as many as five House seats. Other Democratic states looking at potentially redrawing their congressional lines before the midterms include Virginia and Maryland.
Andrew Menezes contributed to this report.
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