Redistricting in Utah ahead of the 2026 elections
Redistricting is the process of enacting new district boundaries for elected offices, particularly for offices in the U.S. House of Representatives and state legislatures. This article covers redistricting activity in Utah after the 2024 elections and before the 2026 elections.
On March 16, 2022, the Utah League of Women Voters and Mormon Women for Ethical Government sued the Utah State Legislature, arguing the legislature violated the state constitution when it repealed and replaced the citizen-approved Proposition 4, a 2018 ballot measure that established a redistricting commission to draw congressional, state legislative, and school board district boundaries for the legislature to consider.[1][2] The groups also argued the congressional map adopted in 2021 was a partisan gerrymander.[3]
The Utah Supreme Court ruled on July 11, 2024, that the legislature's override of Proposition 4 likely violated voters' constitutional right to participate in government.[4] The Court returned the case to Third District Court Judge Dianna Gibson to determine whether the legislature's changes to the ballot initiative were "narrowly tailored to advance a compelling government interest."[2] On August 25, 2025, Gibson struck down the state's congressional map, writing, "The nature of the violation lies in the Legislature’s refusal to respect the people’s exercise of their constitutional lawmaking power and to honor the people’s right to reform their government." On November 10, 2025, Gibson rejected a redrawn map proposed by the legislature that would have maintained four Republican-leaning districts in favor of a proposal from the plaintiffs in the case that added one Democratic-leaning district. According to the order, the new Democratic district had a 43% Republican vote share.[5]
This article documents the redistricting effort in Utah ahead of the 2026 elections. To read about redistricting in Utah after the 2020 census, click here.
- Utah redistrictingUtah's 2025 congressional redistricting
- Court challengesLitigation over the redrawn map
- National contextRedistricting in other states ahead of the 2026 elections
Redistricting in Utah ahead of the 2026 elections
The Utah Supreme Court ruled on July 11, 2024, that the legislature's override of Proposition 4 likely violated voters' constitutional right to participate in government.[6] The Court returned the case to Third District Court Judge Dianna Gibson to determine whether the legislature's changes to the ballot initiative were "narrowly tailored to advance a compelling government interest."[2] On August 25, 2025, Gibson struck down the state's congressional map, writing, "The nature of the violation lies in the Legislature’s refusal to respect the people’s exercise of their constitutional lawmaking power and to honor the people’s right to reform their government."[3] On September 15, 2025, the Utah Supreme Court rejected the legislature's appeal to pause the district court ruling, allowing plans to redraw the map by November 10, 2025, to proceed.[7]
On October 6, 2025, the Utah Legislature approved a new congressional map to submit to the judge for consideration that made two districts more competitive while leaving all four districts leaning Republican.[8] The same day, the plaintiffs in the case against the original map that was struck down also submitted two maps to the judge for consideration.[9] On November 10, 2025, the judge ruled that a plaintiff-drawn map shifting one district Democratic would be used in the 2026 elections.[5]
On November 25, 2025, Utah legislative leaders announced plans to appeal the ruling and hold a special session on December 9, 2025. Utah News Dispatch's Katie McKellar wrote, "During the special session, lawmakers may aweigh delaying candidate filing deadlines in order to allow more time for a different congressional map to be enacted for the 2026 election."[10] During the special session, the Legislature voted to move the filing deadline for congressional candidates from January to March 2026 to allow time for the appeal.[11]
Comparison of old and new congressional map
The following maps compare the congressional district boundaries enacted after the 2020 census with those enacted in 2025 and are colored by partisan change according to 2024 presidential results.
Timeline of mid-decade redistricting in Utah
The timeline below tracks Utah redistricting updates ahead of the 2026 elections, including map proposal and approval and major court filings. For more information about litigation over the new congressional map, click here.
- November 10, 2025
A district court judge ordered that the plaintiffs' proposed congressional map that shifted one district towards Democrats would be used in the 2026 elections.[5]
Court challenges
- If you are aware of any relevant lawsuits that are not listed here, please email us at editor@ballotpedia.org.
League of Women Voters v. Utah State Legislature
On March 16, 2022, the Utah League of Women Voters and Mormon Women for Ethical Government sued the Utah State Legislature, arguing the legislature violated the state constitution when it repealed and replaced the citizen-approved Proposition 4, a 2018 ballot measure that established a redistricting commission to draw congressional, state legislative, and school board district boundaries for the legislature to consider.[12][2] The groups also argued the congressional map adopted in 2021 was a partisan gerrymander.[3]
The Utah Supreme Court ruled on July 11, 2024, that the legislature's override of Proposition 4 likely violated voters' constitutional right to participate in government.[13] The Court returned the case to Third District Court Judge Dianna Gibson to determine whether the legislature's changes to the ballot initiative were "narrowly tailored to advance a compelling government interest."[2] On August 25, 2025, Gibson struck down the state's congressional map, writing, "The nature of the violation lies in the Legislature’s refusal to respect the people’s exercise of their constitutional lawmaking power and to honor the people’s right to reform their government."[3] On September 15, 2025, the Utah Supreme Court rejected the legislature's appeal for a pause on the district court's ruling, allowing plans to redraw the map by November 10, 2025 to proceed.[7]
To read about litigation over the map passed after the 2020 census, click here.
National overview
As of February 2026, six states had congressional district maps that were subject to change before the 2026 elections, and six states—California, Missouri, North Carolina, Ohio, Texas, and Utah—had new congressional maps. Three states were reportedly exploring voluntary redistricting, and three states had congressional maps that were subject to change due to litigation. Before 2025, only two states had conducted voluntary mid-decade redistricting since 1970.[14]
The map below shows redistricting activity between the 2024 and 2026 elections.
The table below shows redistricting activity between the 2024 and 2026 elections as well as the pre-redistricting U.S. House delegation in each state.
| State | Reason for redistricting | Status | Method of redistricting | U.S. House delegation before redistricting | Potential result of new maps |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| New map enacted | |||||
| California | Voluntary redistricting | Voters approved the use of a new map on Nov. 4, 2025. | Commission | 43 D - 9 R | +5 D |
| Missouri | Voluntary redistricting | Gov. Mike Kehoe (R) signed new map into law on Sept. 28, 2025. | Legislature-dominant | 6 R - 2 D | +1 R |
| North Carolina | Voluntary redistricting | Legislature passed new map into law on Oct. 22, 2025 | Legislature-dominant | 10 R - 4 D | +1 R |
| Ohio | Required by law to redistrict | Redistricting commission approved a new map on Oct. 31, 2025 | Legislature-dominant | 10 R -5 D | +2 R |
| Texas | Voluntary redistricting | U.S. Supreme Court ruled the new Texas map could be used in 2026 | Legislature-dominant | 25 R -12 D with 1 vacancy | +5 R |
| Utah | Changed due to litigation | Court approved new plaintiff-submitted map | Legislature-dominant | 4 R - 0 D | +1 D |
| Net | +3 R | ||||
| New map possible | |||||
| Florida | Voluntary redistricting | Special session to occur April 2026 | Legislature-dominant | 20 R - 8 D | - |
| Georgia | Subject to change due to litigation | Litigation ongoing | Legislature-dominant | 9 R - 5 D | - |
| Louisiana | Subject to change due to litigation | Litigation ongoing | Legislature-dominant | 4 R - 2 D | - |
| Maryland | Voluntary redistricting | House approved new map | Legislature-dominant | 7 D - 1 R | - |
| New York | Subject to change due to litigation | Litigation ongoing | Hybrid | 19 D - 7 R | - |
| Virginia | Voluntary redistricting | Constitutional amendment to allow redistricting pending voter approval | Hybrid | 6 D - 5 R | - |
See also
- Redistricting ahead of the 2026 elections
- Redistricting in Utah
- State-by-state redistricting procedures
- Majority-minority districts
External links
- Search Google News for this topic
- All About Redistricting
- Dave's Redistricting
- FiveThirtyEight, "What Redistricting Looks Like In Every State"
- National Conference of State Legislatures, "Redistricting Process"
- FairVote, "Redistricting"
Footnotes
- ↑ The American Redistricting Project, "League of Women Voters of Utah v. Utah State Legislature," accessed August 26, 2025
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 2.3 2.4 Utah News Dispatch, "Judge orders Utah Legislature to draw new congressional maps," August 25, 2025
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 3.3 Associated Press, "Judge rules Utah’s congressional map must be redrawn for the 2026 elections," August 25, 2025
- ↑ New York Times, "Utah’s Gerrymandered House Map Ignored Voters’ Will, State Supreme Court Says," July 11, 2024
- ↑ 5.0 5.1 5.2 In the Third Judicial District Court In and For Salt Lake County, State of Utah, "Ruling and Order," accessed November 11, 2025
- ↑ New York Times, "Utah’s Gerrymandered House Map Ignored Voters’ Will, State Supreme Court Says," July 11, 2024
- ↑ 7.0 7.1 KSL.com, "Utah Supreme Court rejects Legislature's request to stop redistricting," September 15, 2025
- ↑ Politico, "Legislature passes new map in Utah, creating 2 more competitive seats," October 6, 2025
- ↑ Utah News Dispatch, "Plaintiffs submit 2 congressional maps to judge as Utah lawmakers vote on their own," October 6, 2025
- ↑ Utah News Dispatch, "In redistricting fight, Utah Republican lawmakers will appeal to Utah Supreme Court," accessed November 26, 2025
- ↑ KUER, "Utah lawmakers rebuke redistricting, alter election timelines in special session," December 9, 2025
- ↑ The American Redistricting Project, "League of Women Voters of Utah v. Utah State Legislature," accessed August 26, 2025
- ↑ New York Times, "Utah’s Gerrymandered House Map Ignored Voters’ Will, State Supreme Court Says," July 11, 2024
- ↑ Pew Research Center, "Redistricting between censuses has been rare in the modern era," August 28, 2025
 |
State of Utah Salt Lake City (capital) |
|---|---|
| Elections |
What's on my ballot? | Elections in 2026 | How to vote | How to run for office | Ballot measures |
| Government |
Who represents me? | U.S. President | U.S. Congress | Federal courts | State executives | State legislature | State and local courts | Counties | Cities | School districts | Public policy |
