A federal court rejected a bid by Utah Republicans to block a new court-ordered congressional map, dealing a major blow to the Republican Party following a yearslong redistricting saga.
The decision means Democrats are likely to net one seat out of the state, which currently has a four-person all-GOP House delegation, absent late intervention from the Supreme Court.
Republican lawmakers in Utah passed a congressional map in October after state court Judge Dianna Gibson ruled the state could not use previous lines carving up Democratic stronghold Salt Lake City.
Gibson later rejected that map, ruling in November that it “fails to abide by and conform with the requirements” of Proposition 4, a ballot initiative passed by Utah voters in 2018 that created an independent redistricting commission and specific redistricting parameters intended to prevent partisan gerrymandering.
Gibson ordered a map that created a safely Democratic seat around Salt Lake City be used instead, enraging Republicans in the state.
Republicans are hoping to repeal the redistricting proposition via a ballot initiative in this fall’s elections.
But it may be too late for 2026. The state Supreme Court rejected an appeal from Republicans last week that would have scrapped the map, and with Monday’s federal court order, the party is left with few avenues to block the map.
Monday’s federal court decision arose from a case brought by a group of Utah Republicans — including Reps. Celeste Maloy and Burgess Owens — arguing the role of the commission was unconstitutional because it usurped the power of the Legislature.
But the three-judge panel decided Monday that it was too late to redraw the state’s congressional map ahead of the 2026 midterm elections.
The court’s ruling hinged on the “Purcell Principle,” a legal principle holding that federal courts should not intervene in voting-related cases during the run-up to an election.
The panel was made up of District Judge Robert Shelby, an Obama appointee; District Judge Holly Teeter, a Trump appointee; and Circuit Judge Timothy Tymkovich, a Bush appointee. Tymkovich issued a concurring opinion agreeing with the result but declining to invoke the Purcell Principle.
“A federal court preliminary injunction is not appropriate because Utah’s official primary process is upon us,” the judges wrote in the ruling, noting that the filing period for congressional candidates in Utah opens in just two weeks.
The loss for Utah Republicans comes as the GOP pushes to overhaul congressional maps ahead of this fall’s elections at President Donald Trump’s urging. Republicans have redrawn maps in their favor in states from Texas to North Carolina, and Democrats have in turn pushed their own gerrymanders in several blue states, including California and Virginia.
Katharine Biele, president of the Utah League of Women Voters, which brought the initial lawsuit against the Legislature, called the GOP’s efforts “futile attempts to undermine” the map.
“Utah voters should not have to navigate uncertainty to participate in their elections,” Biele said in a statement. “We are pleased the court protected this fair map, and we remain focused on protecting voters’ ability to make their voices heard.”
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