SALT LAKE CITY – In a body blow to Utah’s Republican super majority in the Legislature, the Third District Court here has ordered state lawmakers to implement fair congressional voting maps by November of this year.
Utah Democrats and their allies are, of course, jubilant, because that decision could mean a rebalancing of the state’s congressional delegation in Washington prior to the midterm election in 2026.
“This is a mandate for change,” said Brian King, the chair of the Utah Democratic Party.
“Utah is one of the youngest, fastest-growing and most politically dynamic states in the country. This decision is the reset that voters have been demanding.”
Leaders of Elevate Strategies echo King’s reaction to the court decision.
“This isn’t just a courtroom victory,” according to Jackie Morgan, a senior partner at the consulting and communication firm, “it’s a turning point.
“With these new maps, we’re going to see emerging leaders, energized voters and, for the first time in a generation, a real contest for power. This is the foothold that could shift control of Congress.”
That seems overtly optimistic, given that that Republicans are very likely to appeal the Third District Court ruling.
“One again, certain members of Utah’s judiciary have abandoned the principles of our Constitution Republic,” argued Robert Axson, the chair of the Utah GOP.
“Using flawed rulings to justify their opinions over the principles of our founding is a special kind of hubris – judicial activism in action.”
The roots of the ongoing dispute here in Utah date back more than seven years.
In 2018, Utah voters passed the Proposition 4 ballot initiative, which created an independent redistricting commission to redraw state congressional maps.
In a fit of pique in 2020, the Utah Legislature repealed and replaced the ballot initiative with a law that made the commission purely advisory. The legislature then drew its own congressional maps in 2021 that ignored the commission’s recommendations, especially slicing Salt Lake City to carefully dilute the influence of Democratic voters.
A left-leaning advocacy coalition comprised of the League of Women Voters and the Mormon Women for Ethical Government sued the state in March of 2022 and the issue has been moving through state courts at glacial pace ever since.
The Aug. 25 ruling by Third District Judge Dianna Gibson came on the heels of a Utah Supreme Court opinion affirming that when Utahns use a citizen initiative to reform government, those reforms are constitutionally protected. The court found that the Legislature’s decision to override a voter-approved independent redistricting process violated fundamental democratic principles.
“For years, the Utah Legislature has governed through manipulation, not representation,” Morgan emphasized.
“That era ends today. Fair maps will restore real competition to Utah politics.”
Elevate Strategies is a full-service Democratic general consulting and communication firm founded in 2022 to bring top-tier strategy home to Utah.