A judge has ruled that Utah lawmakers must proceed with redrawing the state’s congressional district map right away, pointing to Texas and California in rejecting their argument that the job can’t be done in time for the 2026 midterm elections.
The ruling keeps Utah firmly among states where partisan redistricting battles stand to tilt the outcome of the next congressional election.
Utah lawmakers were wrong to disregard an independent commission’s map in drawing one that has been used for the 2022 and 2024 elections, Salt Lake County District Judge Dianna Gibson ruled Aug. 25.
The map did away with a district in the Salt Lake City area that has swung between Republicans and Democrats in favor of a map where four districts, each with a piece of the urban corridor, have been won by Republicans with wide margins.
On Tuesday, Gibson denied state lawmakers’ request to keep her ruling from taking effect, rejecting their argument that her one-month deadline to adopt a map that complies with voter-approved standards is too short.