Utah legislative leaders have confirmed they will redraw the state’s congressional maps — under protest.
“Despite a misguided court ruling and an arbitrary 30-day deadline, the Utah Legislature will defend its constitutional authority and move forward with redrawing the state’s congressional map,” said Senate President Stuart Adams and Speaker of the House Mike Schultz in a joint statement.
Third District Court Judge Dianna Gibson struck down Utah’s congressional maps earlier this week. In her ruling, she said the Legislature had acted unconstitutionally and directed lawmakers to draw new districts by Sept. 24. Both Republican leaders had choice words on who was acting in accordance with the state’s framing documents.
“The court’s order unconstitutionally ties the Legislature’s hands by mandating certain redistricting criteria when the U.S. and Utah constitutions leave it to the people’s representatives in the legislature to redistrict.”
Schultz and Adams’ four-paragraph statement makes it clear they strongly disagree with Gibson and are upset about her ruling to draw new maps in 30 days. Last time maps were drawn, they said lawmakers spent six months traveling the state to gather public input.
“Such a timeline is not only unreasonable, it is fundamentally unfair to Utahns,” Schultz and Adams wrote.
Through this legal fight, the state and its lawyers have maintained they believe the Constitution gives state lawmakers the ultimate authority to draw districts. Gibson, however, addressed her reasoning in her ruling.
“Neither the U.S. Constitution nor the Utah Constitution grants sole and exclusive authority over redistricting to the Legislature,” she wrote. “Because legislative power is shared co-equally and co-extensively between the Legislature and the people, and because redistricting is legislative, the people have the fundamental constitution right and authority to propose redistricting legislation that is binding on the Legislature.”
Conceding that they will redraw the maps does not mean lawmakers will give up trying to overturn Gibson’s ruling. Schultz and Adams said they will “continue to pursue every legal option available — including requesting a stay from the Utah Supreme Court if necessary.”
The Utah Supreme Court ruled last year that lawmakers did overstep their authority in this case when they changed a 2018 ballot initiative that created an independent redistricting committee.
The Republican leaders said that when they go back to the drawing board, they will have the same goal of making sure each of Utah’s four U.S. House seats represents both urban and rural parts of the state.
The plaintiffs have accused lawmakers of gerrymandering by splitting Salt Lake County, the bluest area in the state, into four districts, weakening the chances of a Democratic win.
The Lt. Governor’s Office has said in court documents that any new maps would need to be done by Nov. 1 to be used in the midterm elections. Gibson wrote that using the current maps in 2026 would cause irreparable harm.
In the days since the ruling, Utah Republicans and President Donald Trump have sharply criticized Gibson, accusing her of being a judicial activist and saying her ruling is unconstitutional. Gibson was appointed to the bench in 2018 by Gov. Gary Herbert, a Republican.
While this case has been years in the making, it comes in the middle of a nationwide redistricting war. Trump has pushed Republican-majority states to redraw their congressional boundaries to help the GOP gain more U.S. House seats in the 2026 midterm. Texas took up the call and redrew its maps. California Democrats are working to change their maps to counteract Texas with more Democratic seats.
