Utah Republicans Challenge New Congressional Map
On Monday, two Republican lawmakers in Utah initiated a lawsuit against the state’s top election official, aiming to thwart a congressional map mandated by a court. They claim that this court-ordered map was imposed unlawfully by a judge and skews the state’s House representation in favor of Democrats.
Representative Celeste Malloy and Representative Burgess Owens (R-Utah), along with other lawmakers and county commissioners, filed a 31-page federal lawsuit disputing the redistricting framework known as “Map 1.”
The plaintiffs contend that the map contravenes the Elections Clause of the U.S. Constitution by circumventing state legislatures, which hold exclusive rights to delineate congressional districts.
They also assert that Judge Deanna Gibson breached constitutional measures by rejecting a map put forth by the Utah Legislature and instead enacting Map 1, crafted by lawyers and experts affiliated with advocacy organizations.
The lawsuit describes this redistricting initiative as having “never been proposed, discussed, or voted on by any member of the Utah House or Senate.”
According to the complaint, “Map 1 was instead drafted by attorneys and expert witnesses from the League of Women Voters for Ethical Government and the Federation of Mormon Women, private activist groups without any legislative authority.”
The plaintiffs are requesting that a three-judge panel be convened to invalidate Map 1 and to prevent its implementation during the upcoming 2026 election.
They also seek to restore redistricting powers to the Utah Legislature and reinstate state House districts from 2021 unless new maps are drawn by lawmakers.
Currently, Republicans hold all four U.S. House seats in Utah, a situation stemming from district lines approved post-2020 Census. Judge Gibson found those districts to violate voter-endorsed anti-gerrymandering standards, replacing them with a new configuration that keeps Salt Lake County, a Democratic stronghold, intact within a single district rather than dividing it.
In a statement, Malloy, Owens, and their co-plaintiffs emphasized, “This lawsuit is not an attempt to control a political outcome; it is not an attempt to favor one party or disadvantage another.” They argued that the proper forum for discussions around competitive districts belongs in Congress, where proposals are made publicly and revised by accountable representatives.
“We filed this federal lawsuit not because it was easy, but because it was necessary,” they added. “We are not seeking special treatment. All we ask is that the U.S. Constitution be upheld and that Utahns retain their right to choose their representatives through a lawful and responsible process. It’s not radical; it’s fundamental. And it’s worth defending.”
