A Utah judge just struck down the state’s congressional map, and Donald Trump is raging.
According to The Hill, District Court Judge Dianna Gibson ruled that the Utah Legislature violated safeguards when it approved its 2021 map. She said the current districts were drawn to give Republicans an unfair advantage. The judge declared that the state must follow a 2018 ballot measure that required districts to be drawn by an independent commission.
In her ruling, Gibson wrote: “Neither the U.S. Constitution nor the Utah Constitution grants sole and exclusive authority over redistricting to the Legislature. Because legislative power is shared co-equally and co-extensively between the Legislature and the people, and because redistricting is legislative, the people have the fundamental constitutional right and authority to propose redistricting legislation that is binding on the Legislature.”
The decision could open the door for Democrats to grab a House seat in Utah, a state where Republicans currently hold all four districts. That possibility set Trump off.
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On Wednesday, he lashed out on Truth Social, calling the ruling “absolutely unconstitutional” and blaming what he called “Radical left judges.” He warned his supporters: “All Citizens of Utah should be outraged at their activist Judiciary, which wants to take away our Congressional advantage, and will do everything possible to do so.”
Trump doubled down, saying: “This incredible State sent four great Republicans to Congress, and we want to keep it that way. The Utah GOP has to STAY UNITED, and make sure their four terrific Republican Congressmen stay right where they are!”
Republicans see this fight as part of a bigger national battle heading into the 2026 midterms. GOP lawmakers across the country are redrawing maps to protect their slim House majority of 219 to 212. Democrats, led by figures like California Governor Gavin Newsom, have responded with their own moves to tilt districts in their favor.
Trump himself has fueled the redistricting war. Earlier this year, he pushed Texas Republicans to redraw their maps to secure more safe seats. That action prompted Democrats in California to back a ballot measure that would create 5 new Democratic-leaning districts.
In Utah, though, the court ruled that voters had already spoken. In 2018, residents approved a ballot measure demanding an independent commission oversee redistricting. Judge Gibson, who was appointed by Republican Governor Gary Herbert in 2018, made it clear that the people’s will cannot be ignored.
Her decision cuts directly against Trump’s argument. The president complained online: “How did such a wonderful Republican State like Utah, which I won in every Election, end up with so many Radical Left Judges?” But Gibson is not a Democrat appointee. She is a Republican-appointed judge siding with Utah voters over partisan lawmakers.
The ruling now forces the Utah Legislature to come back with new maps that meet the standard of fairness. Nonpartisan maps could give Democrats a rare opening in Salt Lake City, while cutting into Trump’s demand that Utah remain solidly red.
Featured image via Political Tribune Gallery
