Victory: Utah’s Proposition 4 Becomes Law Again and Illegal Congressional Map Is Struck Down – Campaign Legal Center
Salt Lake City, Utah — Today, Campaign Legal Center (CLC), on behalf of the League of Women Voters of Utah (LWV Utah), Mormon Women for Ethical Government (MWEG) and individual Utah voters, successfully defended Utahns’ right to a fair congressional map. The Utah state trial court issued a ruling today that restores the choice that Utah voters made to have electoral districts drawn free from partisan interests. The court determined that the Utah state legislature violated the people’s right to alter or reform their government when they repealed Proposition 4, or Prop 4 – a ballot initiative that aimed to prohibit partisan gerrymandering by establishing the Utah Independent Redistricting Commission and creating fair, neutral criteria and procedures for adopting district maps.
Prop 4, which was passed by Utah voters and unconstitutionally repealed by the legislature, is now the law again. The current gerrymandered congressional map passed by the legislature may not be used in future elections. The Utah state legislature now has a chance to pass a new, fair map that complies with Prop 4, and if it does not, the court will order a new map, which will be used for the 2026 election.
“This is a big victory for Utah voters’ right to fair maps and an affirmation that politicians must not ignore the people. A new, lawful congressional map will ensure true representation for Utahns in Congress,” said Mark Gaber, senior director of redistricting at the nonpartisan Campaign Legal Center. “In America, voters should choose their politicians – not the other way around. Campaign Legal Center will continue to fight to ensure Utahns are voting under a fair congressional map in future elections.”
“This ruling gives the voters of Utah what they have long worked for – fair districts,” said Katharine Biele, president of the League of Women Voters of Utah. “Now the legislature has the opportunity to show it truly believes in representative government by heeding the voice of the people. The League of Women Voters is hopeful the legislature will move forward to pass one of the maps from the Independent Commission.”
“Utahns came together across political lines to advocate for fair maps and the constitutional right to reform their government,” said Emma Petty Addams, co-executive director of Mormon Women for Ethical Government. “Today’s ruling restores the will of the people and the balance of power. We call on our elected leaders to respect the will of the voters and move forward with integrity by adopting maps that truly reflect the voices of all Utahns.”
Follow the latest updates on this lawsuit through our case page.
Background:
In 2018, Utahns exercised their right to reform their government by passing a bipartisan initiative, Proposition 4, also known as “Better Boundaries.” This effort created the Utah Independent Redistricting Commission (UIRC) and created procedures and criteria to ensure fair maps, including banning partisan gerrymandering.
In response, the Utah Legislature repealed Prop 4 in 2020 and replaced it with SB 200, which gutted the key redistricting reforms in Prop 4 and enacted a congressional map that is an extreme partisan gerrymander, in direct contradiction to the will of the voters.
The current lawsuit was filed in 2022, challenging the legislature’s repeal of Prop 4. In July 2024, the Utah Supreme Court reaffirmed that Utahns’ right to alter or reform the government through a ballot initiative is a fundamental constitutional right that the Legislature cannot ignore, and sent the case back to the district court for further proceedings. The decision today applies the framework announced by the Utah Supreme Court in July 2024 in finding that the legislature violated the constitution when it repealed Prop 4.
The win today also builds on previous victories that prevented the Utah legislature from taking power for itself that the constitution does not grant it. In response to the Utah Supreme Court’s 2024 ruling, the legislature attempted to pass a constitutional amendment to undo the decision and give itself the power to amend or repeal any ballot initiative passed by the people. In putting the proposed amendment on the ballot, the legislature used misleading language that falsely described its effect, and failed to publish the text of the amendment as required by the Utah Constitution. In September 2024, the Utah Supreme Court voided the proposed amendment, ruling that the public has a right to truthful ballot language and proper notice for a proposed constitutional amendment. This victory allowed the suit challenging the current map to continue.
CLC, alongside counsel from Parr Brown Gee & Loveless and Zimmerman Booher, is representing the League of Women Voters of Utah (LWV Utah), Mormon Women for Ethical Government (MWEG), and a bipartisan group of individual voters in the ongoing lawsuit.
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The nonpartisan Campaign Legal Center advances democracy through law. We safeguard the freedom to vote, defend voters’ right to know who is spending money to influence elections, and work to ensure public trust in our elected officials.
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