Judge In Utah Hands Dems Big Win In Redistricting Effort
A state judge in Utah delivered a major boost to Democrats ahead of the 2026 midterm elections, throwing out the Republican-drawn congressional map and ordering the creation of a new one that gives Democrats a potential foothold in one of the most reliably conservative states in America.
In a ruling issued late Monday, Utah District Judge Dianna Gibson declared that the map approved by the GOP-controlled legislature “unduly favors Republicans and disfavors Democrats.” Her decision effectively dismantles the current redistricting plan — one that ensured Republican control of all four congressional seats — and replaces it with a Democrat-backed version, according to Fox News.
The legal fight is part of the nationwide redistricting war now shaping up between President Donald J. Trump’s Republican coalition and the Democratic Party as both sides battle to control the House of Representatives in 2026.
Utah — a state President Trump carried by nearly 22 percentage points in the last election — became the latest political battleground after two left-leaning activist groups, the League of Women Voters of Utah and Mormon Women for Ethical Government, sued to overturn the GOP’s map.
Judge Gibson sided with the plaintiffs, invoking a 2018 ballot initiative that claimed to prevent partisan gerrymandering. But instead of requiring the legislature to make further adjustments, Gibson took the unprecedented step of imposing one of the Democrats’ proposed maps, a move Republicans blasted as judicial overreach.
The new lines consolidate nearly all of Democrat-heavy Salt Lake County into a single district, virtually guaranteeing Democrats a congressional seat for the first time in more than a decade. The previous Republican-drawn map had split Salt Lake County among all four districts, dispersing the city’s liberal vote base across the state.
Democratic National Committee Chair Ken Martin celebrated the ruling, calling it “a victory for fairness.”
“The DNC applauds the decision to choose a fair, impartial map that reflects the diversity and ideological makeup of the state,” Martin said. “Utah Republicans gerrymandered the maps because they knew they were losing power. But today, they were once again thwarted by impartial Courts.”
Republicans, however, accused the court of blatant partisanship and warned that the decision sets a dangerous precedent.
Utah GOP Chair Robert Axson blasted the ruling in a fiery statement:
“Judge Gibson has once again exceeded the constitutional authority granted to Utah’s judiciary. After stretching the law to justify taking control of redistricting, she has now rejected Map C — the only option that respected the Legislature’s constitutional role — and imposed a map of activists who are not accountable to Utahns.”
He added,
“This is not interpretation. It is the arrogance of a judge playing King from the bench.”
The controversial decision comes just days after California voters approved Proposition 50, which effectively hands redistricting power back to the state’s Democrat-controlled legislature and is expected to produce as many as five new Democratic-leaning districts. That move could offset recent GOP gains in states like Texas, Missouri, North Carolina, and Ohio, where legislatures have approved maps strengthening Republican control.
The Utah case underscores the high-stakes map war unfolding across the country as both parties maneuver to redraw the electoral battlefield. For Republicans, it’s another reminder that activist judges and left-wing legal groups are working hand-in-glove to chip away at GOP representation — even in states that overwhelmingly support President Trump.