Utah’s Supreme Court rejects appeal to overturn congressional map with Democratic-leaning district

Utah Supreme Court Rejects GOP Appeal, Upholds Congressional Map Favoring Democrats

Utah’s Supreme Court delivered a significant blow to Republican lawmakers Friday, rejecting their appeal and preserving a congressional map that gives Democrats a strong chance to capture one of the state’s four U.S. House seats this fall.

In the order signed by Chief Justice Matthew B. Durrant, the court stated it does not have “jurisdiction over Legislative Defendants’ appeal.” The decision maintains a map ordered by a lower court last November that creates a Democratic-leaning district in a state that has been represented exclusively by Republicans in Congress since early 2021.

The upheld map significantly alters Utah’s political landscape by keeping Salt Lake County, a Democratic stronghold, largely intact within a single district. This marks a dramatic shift from the previous configuration, which divided the county among all four congressional districts, effectively diluting Democratic voting power across the state.

Republican Senate President Stuart Adams expressed frustration with the ruling, saying the “chaos continues.” In a statement, he vowed to continue “defending a process that respects the Constitution and ensures Utah voters across our state have their voices respected.”

The legal battle over Utah’s congressional boundaries began last August when Judge Dianna Gibson struck down the map adopted after the 2020 census. Gibson ruled that the Republican-controlled Legislature had circumvented anti-gerrymandering standards approved by Utah voters through a ballot initiative.

This case gained national attention when former President Donald Trump urged Republican-led states to undertake mid-decade redistricting efforts, seeing them as crucial to maintaining GOP control of the U.S. House of Representatives after the 2026 elections.

Civil rights organizations that challenged the original map celebrated Friday’s decision. Katharine Biele, president of the League of Women Voters of Utah, one of the plaintiffs, said, “We are encouraged that the court dismissed this improper appeal and allowed the process to move forward without disruption to voters or election administrators.”

Emma Petty Addams, co-executive director of Mormon Women for Ethical Government, another plaintiff in the lawsuit, added that “the courts have provided an important check on the Legislature, affirming the people’s constitutional right to alter and reform their government.”

The timing of the ruling is particularly significant as it comes just weeks before Utah’s filing deadline for congressional candidates. The revised map creates political uncertainty for incumbents who may now face more competitive races than they’ve previously encountered.

Political analysts suggest the new boundaries could fundamentally alter Utah’s political representation for the first time in years. The state has been a Republican stronghold, but the redrawn map acknowledges the growing Democratic presence in urban areas, particularly Salt Lake County, which has seen demographic shifts in recent years.

Despite this setback, Republican efforts to challenge the map aren’t over. Two of Utah’s Republican members of Congress have filed a separate appeal in federal court, arguing that the state judge violated the U.S. Constitution by rejecting the congressional districts drawn by the Republican-led state Legislature. That case remains pending.

The Utah redistricting battle reflects a broader national trend where courts have increasingly intervened in partisan gerrymandering disputes. Several states have seen judicial challenges to maps drawn by majority parties seeking to maximize their electoral advantage.

For Utah Democrats, who have been largely marginalized in state politics despite representing a significant portion of the population, particularly in urban areas, this ruling represents a rare victory in their efforts to gain representation proportional to their numbers.

As both parties prepare for the 2024 election cycle, the Supreme Court’s decision ensures that at least one of Utah’s four congressional races will likely be competitive, potentially altering the state’s political dynamics and national representation for years to come.