Last week, Governor Cox called a special session so the legislature could choose a new congressional map in the court-ordered redistricting process. This comes after a judge invalidated Utah’s current congressional map, causing the Utah legislature to reconvene and create a new one before next year’s election.
This past Monday, the Utah Legislative Redistricting Committee met early morning and reduced the number of possible maps for consideration to one. That map, Map C, advanced in committee as the sole map the legislature would consider in its special session.
The legislature then formally convened an hour later and we began our work on the special session call. We first considered SB1011, Redistricting Standards, a bill by Sen. Brady Brammer which proposes to establish a statistical method to evaluate future redistricting plans. Under the bill, future congressional maps would need to pass a “partisan bias test” which evaluates “partisan symmetry.” Maps would pass the “partisan symmetry” test if the same statewide vote percentage translates to the same percentage of seats for either party.
I voted no on SB1011. As applied, this test doesn’t work correctly with states that have a small number of seats. I believe the test undermines the tenets of Proposition 4 and threatens the fair process voters put in place via the Independent Redistricting Commission in 2018.
The legislature also considered, and passed, SB1003, Judiciary Amendments, which would give the Governor the power to appoint the Chief Justice of the Utah Supreme Court.
I opposed this bill because I believe it threatens the independence and integrity of Utah’s judiciary by giving the Governor direct control over who leads the state’s highest court. The Chief Justice should be chosen by fellow justices based on merit and experience, not appointed through a political process. Allowing the executive branch to select the Chief Justice undermines the separation of powers and weakens the courts’ ability to serve as a check on executive authority.
Finally, the Utah legislature considered SB1012, Congressional Boundaries Designation, also known as Map C. This is the map that advanced out of the Utah Legislative Redistricting Committee earlier Monday morning. This proposed map creates the biggest division of Salt Lake County and also divides the City of Millcreek into two different congressional districts.
I voted no on Map C because the proposed boundaries do not preserve the traditional neighborhoods and communities of interest in our community. Dividing our community into different congressional districts dilutes our voice and leaves us without real representation in Washington D.C.
Plaintiffs Maps Submitted
Shortly after we concluded our special session, plaintiffs in the redistricting lawsuit submitted their preferred maps to the courts. The plaintiffs submitted two maps — Map 1 and Map 2 — to consider as alternatives to the legislature’s Map C.
According to plaintiffs, Map 1 comes from a set of 10,000 maps generated by a computer algorithm designed to comply with Prop 4’s priority-ordered redistricting criteria without considering partisan data. It splits only one city and “has a significant population overlap” with two of the original maps proposed by the Independent Redistricting Commission in 2018.
Map 2 is described by plaintiffs as the ‘least change’ map based on the Legislature’s adopted Map C but with “changes made to correct its failures to conform to Proposition 4’s requirements.” Specifically, Map 2 corrects the enacted map’s failure to minimize municipal and county splits to the greatest extent practicable and the enacted map’s failure to comply with Prop 4’s prohibition on party favoritism.
The parties have until Oct. 17 to file briefs, expert reports and other materials in support or opposition to the map submissions to help inform the judge’s decision.
On Oct. 23 and Oct. 24, the judge will hold an evidentiary hearing, if she believes one is needed.
Nov. 10 is the latest possible date for the court to select a final map in time for the 2026 elections.
In the News
I spoke with Deseret News earlier this week about our special session and my opposition to SB1011 and Map C. You can read my full comments here.
What’s Next at the Legislature?
Next week, the Utah legislature will meet for October Interim meetings. Interim meetings are where legislators vet and discuss policy proposals, hear from experts and community members, open committee bill files, and prepare budget requests ahead of next year’s general legislative session. You can view the schedule for Interim committee meetings here, and explore the list of approved 2025 interim study items here.
Stay in Touch!
Thank you, as always, for remaining engaged and sharing your thoughts on the redistricting process, special session bills, interim topics, and policy ideas for the 2026 legislative session. Your voice and input are so important. Please continue to reach out with any questions or ideas you may have.
Best,
Sen. Stephanie Pitcher