As members of Mormon Women for Ethical Government (MWEG), a nonpartisan grassroots organization continuing a strong tradition of Latter-day Saint women who are active participants in our congregations, communities and government, we are proud to have been part of an effort to advocate for the people’s right to elect legislators who represent our communities.
Proposition 4, a Utah citizen-based voter initiative passed in 2018, established neutral criteria and an independent commission to draw nonpartisan redistricting maps to guard against gerrymandering in our state. Instead of following the citizen mandate, the Utah Legislature replaced the independently created maps with its own map. The 2021 congressional map was so partisan that an independent organization that tracks gerrymandering gave Utah’s map an F letter grade. Gerrymandering is an ethical issue. Utah should never get an F grade for its ethics; it isn’t part of the Utah way.
MWEG joined with private citizens and the League of Women Voters of Utah to take the issue to the courts. Ultimately, our system of checks and balances held as the Utah Supreme Court reaffirmed Utahns’ right to reform our government and request fair maps, and the district court did its duty to ensure Utahns would vote under legal maps next year.
While we are elated with the long-overdue success of this yearslong redistricting effort, we take the greatest satisfaction in seeing Prop 4 being both upheld and implemented, despite legislative efforts to stop it. We have demonstrated that the people still have a voice. This win serves as a reminder that it is not only our right but also our civic duty to reform our government through our votes and other legal means if we see unethical practices, especially if our representatives skirt ethical and legal boundaries in favor of partisanship over the people’s will.
This win also demonstrates the value of pressing forward with patience and assertiveness to achieve truly representative governance. Our fellow Utahns — Republican, Democrat and independent — wanted fair election maps when they voted in favor of Prop 4. As residents of Salt Lake who all live within a few miles of each other yet were placed in three different districts according to the gerrymandered 2021 map, we joined our voices with fellow Utahns to advocate for a better way. Under the new map, we will be represented by a single member of Congress whom we can turn to about issues specific to our community, just as voters in rural parts of the state will now have a dedicated member of Congress who is not splitting their attention with the state’s urban core.
We consider it a privilege to give financial donations to support MWEG and its efforts. We join our efforts with hundreds of other MWEG donors — Utah women who are teachers, dentists, lawyers and mothers; single, married, divorced and widowed; and more, all contributing what they can, both money and time, into the collective MWEG pot to ensure that we and our neighbors will have a better chance of electing representatives who reflect the political will of our communities.
Our shared desire to be peacemakers weaves through all we do as advocates for ethical government. We continue to learn how to disagree respectfully, fact-find and practice kindness. Our experience advocating for fair maps alongside an ideologically diverse group of Utahns has activated a desire to continue down this path of cross-partisan power building. We may be registered for different political parties, but we have found commonality and shared principles in this endeavor. During a time when politicians all over the country are rushing to gerrymander to gain partisan power, the people of Utah have done the opposite. We invite all Utahns to join us in support of principled government, with power held in the hands of “We the people.”