- Legislature submitted congressional map C to court for approval after public comments.
- Many lawmakers expressed that they don't agree with the court-order or the process it laid out.
- Republican lawmakers still have plans to appeal the court order.
Utah’s Legislature has voted on a proposed congressional map to be submitted to a district court judge for approval.
But, Republican leaders have made sure to say at every step, they don’t think they should have to do so.
Utah’s Legislative Redistricting Committee voted early Monday to recommend the map labeled “Option C” for consideration by the rest of the Utah Legislature.
The map was then presented to both chambers of the Legislature and passed in the House by a vote of 36-17 and in the Senate by a vote of 18-9.
This exercise in map redrawing comes after a Utah Supreme Court ruling last year, saying the Utah Legislature shouldn’t have been allowed to amend 2018’s Proposition 4, also known as the Better Boundaries initiative.
Last month, 3rd District Court Judge Dianna Gibson ruled that with the initiative’s standards back in place the existing congressional map could not be used in the 2026 election since she said it does not meet Proposition 4’s requirements. Her ruling required the congressional map to be redrawn.
Following a 10-day public comment period for proposed congressional maps, the redistricting committee recommended Map C to be voted on by the Legislature.
This map will now be submitted to Gibson, who will consider the map and its compliance with Prop 4.
Gibson can then either approve the Legislature’s map if she believes it complies with Proposition 4 or, if she does not approve the map, she can choose a map submitted by the plaintiffs. She has until Nov. 10 to decide on a map so that preparations for the 2026 midterm elections can begin.
Republican lawmakers emphasized repeatedly that the Utah Constitution gives the power of redistricting to the Legislature, so they do not believe the judge can choose a map that was not approved by the Legislature.
“It is our duty as a legislature to approve a map, otherwise there is no other means by which a map may be used, even if parties ask for it,” said Sen. Brady Brammer, R-Pleasant Grove. “It’d be a malfeasance in office for a court to attempt to accept a map that has not been approved by the legislature, or for the lieutenant governor to certify and use a map that has not been approved by the legislature”
Lawmakers criticize the court’s demand to redraw maps
“I think this is not the right process,” said Senate President Stuart Adams, R-Layton.
When presenting the map to the Senate for a vote, Sen. Scott Sandall, R-Tremonton, the chair of the Legislative Redistricting Committee, emphasized that he does not agree with the process and the court order under which they are operating.
He added that the Legislature “fully intends to appeal it to the Utah Supreme Court and, if necessary, the U.S. Supreme Court at the appropriate time.”
Sandall also explained that the map drawn in 2021 will be kept in code, so if their appeals are successful in unblocking that map, it will become the applicable map again.
Lawmakers also emphasized multiple times that with only 30 days to redraw maps, they weren’t able to fully consult the public like they would in a typical redistricting process. The fact that they could only consider maps that were submitted before the public comment period was also highlighted.
“While we considered the public’s input on which proposed maps to choose, we could not and cannot use the feedback from the public to make changes or adjustments we might have otherwise made to the proposed maps,” Sandall said.
There were multiple senators who said they voted “no” only because they were against the court order and the process. One such lawmaker was Sen. Daniel McCay, R-Riverton.
“I’m just going to say that I think that this process that courts have asked us to come up with is a farce, and it’s a joke,” McCay said.
What lawmakers said about the map
Though they didn’t agree with the court’s order, Republican lawmakers said they did everything they could to follow what was asked of them.
Sandall said that Map C followed all of the standards outlined in Prop 4.
Sen. Stephanie Pitcher, D-Millcreek, said that in the 2021 map her constituency was split three ways and said Map C still splits her constituency and does not maintain communities of interest.
“My constituency remains one of the most significantly impacted,” she said.
Sen. Luz Escamilla, D-Salt Lake City, who served on the redistricting committee, also spoke out against Map C: “I do believe this specific map does not follow redistricting standards and requirements of Prop 4 In Regard To subsection 4.”
Sen. Calvin Musselman, R-West Haven said that it is near impossible to create a map without some sort of political subdivision being split. He added that if you can minimize the number of splits “as best you possibly can, then I think that’s the map that we should give the greatest consideration to, and it seems, if I’m not mistaken, that this one fits that criteria.”
Throughout the whole process, minimizing the amount of county and municipal splits has been a high priority. Map C has three municipal splits and three county splits, which is lower than other options.
Rep. Stephanie Gricius, R-Eagle Mountain said their approved map passes all the tests, and emphasized that it keeps Salt Lake City together. She added that compared to the other considered maps this one had the least amount of splits and kept more communities of interest together.
What else did the Legislature do during the special session?
- The Legislature passed SB 1003 which calls for the governor to appoint a chief justice from among members of the Supreme Court when there is a vacancy, with the advice and consent of the Senate.
- The Legislature passed multiple bills that rearrange and clarify state code, without altering policy.
- The Legislature passed HB 1001 which modifies provisions regarding the management of berms in the Great Salt Lake.
- Both chambers passed the joint resolution HJR 101 which approves the state’s acceptance of $10,000,000 of federal funds from the Rural Health Transformation Program under the One Big Beautiful Bill Act of 2025.
- The Legislature passed HB 1004 which creates a process for the classification and retention of election records.