Overview
- District Judge Dianna Gibson ruled just before a state deadline that the Legislature’s “Map C” violated Proposition 4 and selected the plaintiffs’ “Map 1” for the 2026 cycle.
- Map 1 keeps most of Salt Lake County within a single district, creating a Democratic-leaning seat in a state where Republicans currently hold all four U.S. House seats.
- The alternative map was submitted by the League of Women Voters of Utah and Mormon Women for Ethical Government under Prop 4’s neutral criteria that bar using partisan data.
- Utah Republican leaders condemned the decision as judicial overreach, said they will appeal, weighed impeachment of the judge, and discussed repeal efforts, while the lieutenant governor said the state will comply as challenges proceed.
- The decision lands within a broader mid-decade redistricting fight driven by GOP efforts and Democratic countermeasures such as California’s Prop. 50, with Democrats needing only a small net gain to retake the U.S. House in 2026.