Latest Updates from Our Favorite Feeds
On August 25, 2025, a Utah Third District judge ruled that Utah lawmakers had unconstitutionally overturned a ballot initiative known as Proposition 4 that created an independent redistricting commission and said that they would have to redraw new maps.
Proposition 4 required congressional maps to account for population deviation, minimize the division of municipalities and counties, and follow natural geography and boundaries.
Under this order, the legislature was given 30 days to draw new maps that would satisfy anti-gerrymandering requirements. The Legislative Redistricting committee released five maps labeled A-E for public comment.
In a short meeting today, prior to a special legislative session, the Legislative Redistricting committee voted to approve Map C, which sent the map to the legislature for approval. Then, during the special session, the Utah House and Utah Senate also voted in favor of Map C.
Following the vote, multiple agencies and representatives have spoken on the redistricting vote.
Table of Contents
ToggleElizabeth Rasmussen, the Executive Director of Better Boundaries, also spoke about Map C being passed. Notably, Better Boundaries was the organization that ran the Proposition 4 initiative.
Rasmussen stated, “We are disappointed the Legislature passed both S.B. 1011 and Map C, missing an opportunity to rebuild trust with voters.”
She also provided the following statement:
When politicians control redistricting, there is always an incentive to protect power. That is why Utah voters passed Proposition 4 to create fair standards and measures that could evolve as data and technology changed.
Map C demonstrates how the core principles of Proposition 4 are being sidestepped. Proposition 4 called for fairness measured by the best available tools and data, transparency in how maps are drawn, and accountability to voters rather than political interests. Those principles have been replaced with a narrow set of tests that define fairness in limited terms and make it easier for lawmakers to say a map is technically fair even when broader evidence shows it’s not. The tactics have changed, but the result is the same – a map that serves those in power instead of the voters they represent.
Better Boundaries will keep working to ensure Utah’s maps serve voters, not politicians. We will stay engaged as the court continues to review Utah’s redistricting process and will keep advocating for fairness, transparency, and accountability so Utahns can have confidence that their voices matter.”
Various members of the Utah Legislature spoke about the passing of the redistricting maps.
“Despite a condensed timeline, our committee remained committed to transparency and public engagement,” said Sen. Scott Sandall, co-chair of the Legislative Redistricting Committee. “The approved map adheres to Proposition 4 requirements and reflects the diversity of Utah by ensuring every district includes both rural and urban communities. Redistricting is the Legislature’s constitutional responsibility, and we continue to prioritize fair maps that give every Utahn a strong, equal voice in Congress.”
“Every Utahn—whether from a rural community, an urban neighborhood, or a small town—deserves a strong voice in Washington D.C.,” said Rep. Candice Pierucci, co-chair of the Legislative Redistricting Committee.
Representative Pierucci added, “The approved map ensures that each member of Congress represents all Utah families, whether they live in rural Utah or along the Wasatch Front. Redistricting is, and always has been, the Legislature’s constitutional responsibility, and we hope the courts will respect and uphold that responsibility.”
A press release from the Utah Legislature stated that Map C met all necessary criteria under Proposition 4.
“It has a zero-population deviation, only three municipal splits and three county splits. The map prioritizes compactness, contiguity, and ease of transportation. It also follows natural geography and boundaries while maximizing alignment across different types of districts. Neither the Legislative Redistricting Committee nor the Legislature used or considered political data or information in the redistricting process,” the press release stated.
The Utah Senate and House Minority Caucuses, comprised of Utah democrats, also released a statement that reads:
“The Utah Senate and House Minority Caucuses strongly oppose the legislature’s passage of S.B. 1011 and S.B. 1012 (map C) during the Special Session on Redistricting. Of all five maps, Map C guarantees the creation of some of the least competitive districts in the state.”
We believe that S.B. 1011—much like S.B. 200 did in 2020—alters the language and intent of Proposition 4. The bill passed today too broadly narrows the methods to determine if boundaries unduly favor a political party.
Proposition 4 clearly outlined that the redistricting process should rely on ‘the best available data and scientific and statistical methods.’ Both Partisan Bias and Mean-Median Difference tests outlined in S.B. 1011 use inadequate measures that allow minority parties to be damaged in states that are lopsided, like Utah.
We remain hopeful that the Utah Third District Court will recognize that this approach does not align with the standards set by Utah voters when they passed Proposition 4.”
Additionally, Brian King, the Utah Democratic Party chair, stated that he disagreed with the approval of Map C. He said, “After years of court battles, after a landmark Utah Supreme Court decision affirming voters’ right to reform their government, and after overwhelming public demand for fair and representative districts, the Utah Legislature has once again chosen partisan self-preservation over public trust.”
“Let’s be clear: this map was engineered by and for Republican politicians to entrench their power. Utah GOP leadership has openly acknowledged that this version is the only one that would ‘defeat Democrats.’ There is no amount of statistical spin or rushed legislative process that can hide their true intentions: to continue rigging the game in their party’s favor,” King also said.
“We believe in a Utah where communities, not politicians, choose their representation. This process has once again revealed a legislature either unwilling or incapable of honoring that principle,” He added, “Voters will not forget who tried to silence them. We will not stop fighting for truly fair maps and for the right of every Utahn to have a voice that matters.”
Chair King noted that the Third District Court will review Map C and any maps submitted by other parties to the case and said the map is scheduled to be finalized by November 10th.
Subscribe to get the latest posts sent to your email.
Subscribe now to keep reading and get access to the full archive.
By rssfeeds-admin