SALT LAKE CITY—Plaintiffs in a lawsuit over congressional boundaries established by the Utah Legislature were ecstatic over a Utah Supreme Court ruling last Thursday that reversed a lower court’s decision to dismiss a count dealing with citizen ballot initiatives. The ruling opened the door to the original lawsuit being taken to trial. The suit will now go back to Third District Court.

In 2018, Proposition 4 was passed by Utah voters, which created the Utah Independent Redistricting Commission that was tasked with drawing and submitting Utah’s congressional and state legislative districts to the legislature for approval, according to the League of Women Voters (LWV) of Utah website. The group is one of the plaintiffs in the case.

“The LWV and Mormon Women for Ethical Government (MWEG) filed a lawsuit in the Third Judicial District Court for Salt Lake County, asserting the Utah Legislature’s alteration of Proposition 4 violated the Utah Constitution’s right to direct lawmaking through ballot initiative. The complaint further asserted that the Congressional districts enacted by the Legislature after the 2020 Census were a partisan gerrymander and violated the Utah Constitution’s clauses protecting free elections, equal protection by the law, free speech and association, and the right to vote,” the LWV of Utah website stated.

“This is a sweeping victory,” said Better Boundaries Executive Director, Katie Wright. “This gives voters the right to pick their legislator instead of the politician picking their voter. Voters have the right to reform government and legislation. They can’t just repeal that.”

This is a check on runaway power by the Utah State Legislature, she said. “The court was unanimous. Proposition 4 was passed by the voters. They exercised their constitutional right to ballot initiatives.”

Unfortunately, the balance of power got out of skew deeply, said Wright. “We saw the judicial branch give power back to the people returning the balance.”

This is a historic decision, said Ben Phillips, legal consultant for voting rights, Redistricting Campaign Legal Center who is representing the plaintiffs in the case. “The legislature can’t just ignore voters’ right to reform the government. It’s a fundamental right that the legislature has to respect.”

When voters passed Proposition 4 in 2018 for fair and independent redistricting the legislature repealed it, he said. “They did their own partisan gerrymandering and gutted it.”

Senate President J. Stuart Adams and Speaker Mike Schultz released this statement after the Utah Supreme Court’s decision. It reads in part:

“Utah has been recognized as the best-managed state in the nation, with a strong spirit of collaboration known for solving tough issues for the citizens of the state. This is one of the worst outcomes we’ve ever seen from the Utah Supreme Court. Rather than reaching the self-evident answer, today the Court punted and made a new law about the initiative power, creating chaos and striking at the very heart of our republic.” 

The Utah House Democratic Leadership Team released this statement: 

 “We commend the Utah Supreme Court’s decision allowing the lower courts to proceed with the lawsuit challenging the legislature’s redistricting boundaries. We urge the court to thoroughly examine the issues at hand and promptly resolve the case before the next election cycle. This timely action is crucial to prevent prolonged uncertainty and to uphold the integrity and public confidence in our democratic election process. 

As we await further developments, we reaffirm our commitment to advocating for a redistricting process that maintains the integrity of our elections and respects the rights of all voters. We remain committed to honoring the will of the people who passed Proposition 4, establishing an independent redistricting commission, and are dedicated to working with stakeholders, advocates, and community members to ensure a more inclusive and representative democracy where every vote counts, and every community is fairly represented.”

“It’s hard to predict timing,” said Phillips. “The legislature can make their own arguments but it’s hard to see how they can repeal what the people wanted with Prop 4.”

People expressed what they wanted, he said. “The (Supreme Court) decision is a powerful one. It affirms the rights of the people.”