Utahns have been fighting for fair maps in Utah for nearly a decade and a ruling today once again has solidified that voters in the state will vote under a fair map this year.
After a momentous victory in a state court case where the judge ruled in favor of a map that our clients, the League of Women Voters of Utah (LWVUT) and Mormon Women for Ethical Government (MWEG) proposed, anti-voter advocates filed a federal court case against implementation of the new, fair map.
Campaign Legal Center moved to intervene in this case on behalf of LWVUT and MWEG to continue ensuring that all voters can make their voices heard under fair maps.
After a hearing on February 18, 2026, the court has ruled in favor of Campaign Legal Center and our clients, keeping their proposed fair map in place ahead of the 2026 midterm elections.
What is the federal case in Utah?
After years of fighting attempts by the Utah State Legislature to undermine the will of the voters, allies of the Legislature went to federal court in yet another attempt to keep in place an extreme partisan gerrymander.
A group of plaintiffs including U.S. Representatives Celeste Maloy and Burgess Owens and several local elected officials filed a new lawsuit on February 2, 2026, in an attempt to stop Utah from having a fair map.
They claimed that the new, fair map was enacted in violation of the federal constitution’s elections clause. Their argument — that state courts are powerless to impose a lawful congressional map when the legislature has not done so — relied on a dangerous concept called the independent state legislature theory, which was resoundingly rejected by the U.S. Supreme Court in 2023.
The plaintiffs in this new case wanted to prevent the fair map from being used and were advocating for a return to the 2021 map that the state court already ruled violated the Utah Constitution and Proposition 4.
So, Campaign Legal Center, on behalf of our clients LWVUT, MWEG and individual Utahns, filed a motion to intervene in this federal case as defendants, seeking to dismiss the case, oppose the plaintiffs’ request for an injunction, and defend Utahns’ rights to a fair and legal map.
Under the federal election clause, redistricting must be done in compliance with the laws of the state, and when necessary, a state court has the authority and obligation to impose a new map, which is exactly what happened in the state court case.
The court ruled that the judge in the state case had the power to impose a fair map for voters and because Utah has entered into an active primary campaign, it is too late in the election process to change the map.
Another Victory for Utahns!
The court’s ruling emphasizes what we already know to be true – voters should be able to choose their politicians, not the other way around.
Campaign Legal Center will continue our fight in ensuring that all voters can make their voices heard, and we will continue to advocate for Congress to pass a nationwide solution prohibiting partisan gerrymandering and mandating fair congressional districts in all states.
Support us as we continue our work to ensure that all Americans can vote under fair maps.