How Utah got a new congressional map, explained
A 2018 ballot initiative, a court fight that began in 2022 and a failed repeal drive produced the map Utah votes under on Nov. 3, including a Salt Lake County district that leans Democratic.
Continuing story: Utah's congressional map
Utah voters will elect their four U.S. House members on Nov. 3, 2026, under a map adopted by a state judge, not the Legislature. The biggest change is a new 1st Congressional District covering most of Salt Lake County that statistically favors the Democratic nominee. Republicans now hold all four of Utah's House seats. [1][2][4]
The fight traces back to Proposition 4, a 2018 ballot initiative that passed with 50.3% of the vote and created a seven-member independent redistricting commission. In 2020, lawmakers passed SB200, which added a legislative committee to the process and repealed the initiative's bans on using partisan data and on drawing maps that favor a party. It passed the Senate 25-0 and the House 67-4. [3]
How it got here
Nov. 12, 2021: The Legislature enacted the congressional map used in the 2022 and 2024 elections. [1]
March 16, 2022: The League of Women Voters of Utah and Mormon Women for Ethical Government sued over the map and the Legislature's changes to Prop 4. [1]
July 11, 2024: The Utah Supreme Court ruled that the Legislature's override of Prop 4 likely violated voters' rights and sent the case back to 3rd District Judge Dianna Gibson. [1]
Aug. 25, 2025: Gibson struck down the 2021 map. On Sept. 15, the Utah Supreme Court refused to pause her ruling. [1]
Oct. 6, 2025: In a special session, lawmakers passed a new map that kept four Republican-leaning districts, along with SB1012, which passed the Senate 18-9 and the House 56-17. The plaintiffs submitted two maps of their own. [1][3]
Nov. 10, 2025: Gibson adopted one of the plaintiffs' maps, which includes one Democratic-leaning district. Legislative leaders announced an appeal, and in a Dec. 9 special session lawmakers moved the congressional filing deadline from January to March 2026. [1]
February 2026: The Utah Supreme Court rejected the appeal on Feb. 20. A three-judge federal panel then declined to block the map in a suit brought by Utah Republicans, including Reps. Celeste Maloy and Burgess Owens. "A federal court preliminary injunction is not appropriate because Utah's official primary process is upon us," the panel wrote. [1][2]
April 30, 2026: Lt. Gov. Deidre Henderson found that a Utah Republican Party initiative to repeal the independent commission fell short. Backers turned in more than 200,000 signatures, but after withdrawals it had 161,961 and met the requirement in 24 of 29 Senate districts, short of the 26 needed. It is not on the Nov. 3 ballot. [3]
Where it stands
Five candidates are running in the new 1st District: Democrat Ben McAdams, a former congressman; Republican Riley Owen; Libertarian Jesse West; unaffiliated candidate Elias Montgomery; and write-in candidate Bobby Darvish. [4]
Utah is one of nine states with new congressional maps for 2026, according to Ballotpedia. [1]
What to watch
The Nov. 3 results, including whether Democrats win the new 1st District. [2][4]
Whether Republican leaders try again to repeal or change Prop 4 before the 2028 election, after the 2026 repeal initiative failed to qualify. [3]
Any further proceedings in the federal suit, where the panel ruled only on whether to block the map before the 2026 election. [2]
Sources
- Ballotpedia · Redistricting in Utah ahead of the 2026 elections
- Politico · Federal court declines to block new Utah congressional map (Feb. 23, 2026)
- Ballotpedia · Utah Eliminate the Independent Redistricting Commission Initiative (2026)
- The Salt Lake Tribune · Ben McAdams faces Riley Owen and three others in the 1st Congressional District (Oct. 12, 2026)
Background explainer by The Utah Ledger. AI-assisted reporting, checked against the sources above.