Category: Redistricting
Supreme Court Allows Texas To Use New Map
judges should avoid changing election rules close to an election
Utah Republicans just let Democrats steal a seat they could never win
A Utah judge just turned a safe Republican congressional seat into a near-guaranteed Democrat seat — and she did it in a state controlled top to bottom by Republicans. How does that happen? A generation of weak Republicans in the elected branches handed liberals control of the judicial branch and gave them the ballot initiative system they needed to take over the state piece by piece.
Democrats can’t win statewide office in half the country, so they’ve turned ballot initiatives into their weapon of choice. Pollsters craft soothing messaging, activists gather signatures, and voters — thinking they’re supporting neutrality — unknowingly approve measures that shift power to Democrats.
Supermajority states serve as a control group. The problem isn’t power; the problem is the GOP’s refusal to wield it.
The “nonpartisan redistricting commission” scam remains their most effective tool. These commissions always promise fairness, and they always produce more Democratic seats.
Utah proved the point in 2018, when 66% of voters approved Proposition 4, even though most Utahns don’t want Democrats running the state. The same tactic produced Medicaid expansion and marijuana legalization. None of these measures would have survived the legislature — but they passed once voters encountered them in isolation.
James Madison warned against pure democracy for this exact reason. A republic draws authority from the “great body of the society,” not from a small faction or self-appointed elite. Ballot-initiative commissions flip that logic on its head. They let unelected actors redraw power for themselves.
Here comes the judge
After the 2020 census, Utah’s legislature drew a fourth Republican congressional seat, as the state constitution requires. Democrats and their allies at the League of Women Voters sued to nullify the map and force a Salt Lake-centered Democrat seat.
In August, Third District Judge Dianna Gibson obliged. She declared the legislature’s map unconstitutional because, in her view, it ignored Prop. 4 — even though the constitution explicitly vests redistricting power in the legislature. She ordered a new process for 2026 and told both sides to submit maps.
The GOP-controlled legislature complied, proposing a compromise map and passing SB 1011 to impose “partisan fairness” tests on future redistricting so the commission couldn’t hand Democrats a permanent advantage.
Gibson ignored all of it. On Nov. 10, she tossed the legislative map, sidelined SB 1011, and adopted the map drawn by the very activist groups suing the state — the same groups that engineered Prop. 4.
Plainly unconstitutional
Nothing in Utah’s constitution supports what Gibson did. Article IX, Section 1 states that the legislature “shall divide the state” into congressional districts. A commission cannot do it. A judge cannot do it. Activists certainly cannot do it.
Yet Lt. Gov. Deidre Henderson signed off on Gibson’s map, even though state law required her to certify only lawful maps. That decision reflects a deeper problem: Too many Utah Republicans treat constitutional violations as minor inconveniences and concede ground to Democrats who never reciprocate.
Democrats defend Gibson’s ruling by citing Arizona State Legislature v. Arizona Independent Redistricting Commission (2015), when Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg reinterpreted the word “legislature” to include ballot initiatives. Even if you grant that tortured reading of the U.S. Constitution, Utah’s constitution is far more explicit. Only the legislature draws maps.
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Eric Lee/Bloomberg via Getty Images
Make impeachment great again
At the federal level, impeachment has become an empty threat. Senate math makes convictions nearly impossible. But red states with Republican supermajorities don’t face that obstacle.
Utah’s legislature holds a 61-14 majority in the House and a 22-6 majority in the Senate. Rep. Trevor Lee (R-Utah) on my show last week called for the impeachment of both Judge Gibson and Lt. Gov. Henderson for violating the state constitution. Republicans have the votes to do it — and the constitutional duty to rein in judicial usurpation.
Other states have shown it can be done. In 2018, West Virginia impeached all five members of its Supreme Court for corruption and removed them. Red states such as Oklahoma, Montana, Missouri, and South Carolina face the same problem Utah now faces: liberal judges empowered by timid Republicans.
A perilous path
Utah proves a point conservatives hate to admit. Republicans in Washington often claim they can’t implement the party’s agenda because they lack power. But in Utah, Republicans hold all the power — and still refuse to use it. They allow commissions to override them, courts to embarrass them, and Democrats to seize ground they could never win through elections.
Supermajority states serve as a control group. The problem isn’t power; the problem is the GOP’s refusal to wield it.
Unless Republicans act with conviction, Utah will follow Colorado’s path. Democrats chipped away at Colorado one institution at a time while Republicans shrugged. Now Colorado is a Democratic Party fortress.
Utah is heading down the same trail — unless Republicans use the constitutional tools they still possess.
‘Clear example of judicial activism’: Judge gives Democrats a boost with congressional map in red state
As Republicans attempt to redraw districts to gain a cushion in their razor-thin majority in Congress ahead of the midterms next year, an unexpected setback in a reliably red state raises the stakes.
A redistricting case in Utah has potentially thrown a wrench in the nationwide redistricting battle.
‘Turns out, she was orchestrating it from the start.’
The AP reported that Judge Dianna Gibson has ordered the Utah congressional districts to be redrawn in conformity with a 2018 ballot initiative known as Proposition 4, which in effect could grant Democrats a seat in the House.
Proposition 4’s map was drawn by the League of Women Voters of Utah and Mormon Women for Ethical Government, the plaintiffs of the redistricting case. That map largely keeps Salt Lake City intact in one district rather than breaking it apart, creating a reliably blue voter base that could flip one of the state’s four congressional seats to the Democrats.
Gibson rejected S.B. 200, a congressional map that was enacted by Republican lawmakers and that maintained four seats, on the grounds that it did not meet the rules against gerrymandering.
RELATED: Gov. Gavin Newsom threatens to redistrict California after Texas GOP drops new district map proposal
Photo by Matt Archer/Getty Images
Gibson’s decision was reportedly handed down just a few minutes before the clock struck midnight on Monday.
Republican Utah state Rep. Candice Pierucci called the redrawn map a “clear example of judicial activism.”
Pierucci added, “The Judge drove the entire process, set aggressive deadlines and refused an extension for map drawing by the legislature. We moved 104 lawmakers under those deadlines and she herself couldn’t be bothered to issue the decision before a quarter to midnight. We followed her direction every step of the way — turns out, she was orchestrating it from the start.”
All four Utah congressional seats are currently occupied by Republicans, and Republicans currently have a slim majority in the U.S. House, holding 219 seats to Democrats’ 213. Three seats are vacant following two deaths and one resignation.
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Judicial Watch Sues Illinois Gov. Pritzker for Records on ‘Safe Haven’ for Texas Democrat Lawmakers
(Washington, DC) – Judicial Watch announced today it filed Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) lawsuit against Gov. JB Pritzker (D-IL) for records on the state’s role in providing refuge to Texas Democrat legislators, who fled their state in an attempt to deny quorum and block a redistricting vote (Judicial Watch Inc. v. Office of the […]
The post Judicial Watch Sues Illinois Gov. Pritzker for Records on ‘Safe Haven’ for Texas Democrat Lawmakers appeared first on Judicial Watch.
Newsom’s gerrymandering Prop. 50 passes easily minutes after polls close in California
The proposition that would allow Democrats in California to further manipulate congressional districts has passed easily, just minutes after polls closed at 8 p.m. local time.
Both the New York Times and the Associated Press almost immediately called the contest. Democrat Gov. Gavin Newsom had campaigned for the proposition on the basis that it would help combat redistricting schemes in Texas to help Republicans gain seats in Congress.
‘What Proposition 50 represents to those that have been bullied … to those that are concerned about not only themselves but each other, our community, the city, our state, our nation, and, for that matter, what we represent to rest of the world.’
Proposition 50 was the only item on the ballot in California.
Former Republican California Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger came out forcefully against the plan and campaigned to persuade against voting for the proposition.
California spent hundreds of millions of dollars sending 23 million ballots out to the California electorate. It’s expected that five more Democrat seats will be gained in the U.S. Congress because of the proposition.
The president blasted the proposition earlier on Tuesday in a post on social media.
“The Unconstitutional Redistricting Vote in California is a GIANT SCAM in that the entire process, in particular the Voting itself, is RIGGED. All ‘Mail-In’ Ballots, where the Republicans in that State are ‘Shut Out,’ is under very serious legal and criminal review,” he wrote.
Newsom characterized the proposition as a referendum against Trump’s policies, including on immigration.
“People are on edge. Communities of color are on edge. Folks scared to death to go out trick-or-treating the other night, scared to walk their dogs, go to a playground, or go to a park or go to a loved one’s funeral because they might be disappeared on the basis of what they look like, where they congregate, the language they speak,” he said to a group of supporters.
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“The essence of this moment, what Proposition 50 represents to those that have been bullied, to those that have been demeaned, to those that feel powerless, to those that are concerned about not only themselves but each other, our community, the city, our state, our nation, and, for that matter, what we represent to rest of the world,” he added.
“That’s what Prop. 50 represents,” Newsom concluded.
Polling prior to the election had the proposition ahead with the support of about 56% in one poll, while only 43% said they would vote against the measure.
“Donald Trump asks for 5 seats and [Texas Gov.] Greg Abbott automatically bends the knee,” wrote Newsom in a post from July.
“The 2026 election is being rigged. California won’t sit back and watch this happen,” he added.
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Miyares: Virginia Dems’ ‘Last-Ditch’ Gerrymandering Gambit Is Unconstitutional
According to Miyares, there is no lawful path available for Democrats to redistrict the state ahead of the 2026 midterms.
Indiana governor fights back after Gavin Newsom plots to deliver Congress to Democrats
Indiana Governor Mike Braun (R) announced on Monday that he was calling a special legislative session “to protect Hoosiers from efforts in other states that seek to diminish their voice in Washington and ensure their representation in Congress is fair.”
States across the country are set to redraw or at least reconsider their congressional boundaries ahead of the 2026 midterm elections, where a Democratic gain of three seats would break the GOP’s hold on the House of Representatives.
‘The people of Indiana did not elect a Republican supermajority so our Senate could cower, compromise, or collapse at the very moment courage is required.’
After a great deal of hand-wringing about Texas Republicans’ successful adoption in August of a new congressional map that could net the GOP five extra seats, California Democrats responded with a new map that would create five new majority-Democrat districts should voters cast ballots in support of Proposition 50 on Nov. 4.
Among the other states that have looked at their respective maps with minds to help fellow travelers keep or take Congress are:
- Missouri, where Republican Gov. Mike Kehoe recently signed a new map into law;
- Kansas, where GOP state Senate President Ty Masterson announced on Monday that a sufficient number of signatures had been collected from Senate Republicans for a special session on redistricting;
- North Carolina, where last week the GOP-controlled legislature passed a new congressional map that could give Republicans an additional House seat; and
- Virginia, where Democratic lawmakers are reportedly preparing to launch a redistricting push this week.
Governor Braun indicated that the special legislative session for the Indiana General Assembly will convene on Nov. 3.
The governor’s announcement comes just days after a spokeswoman for Indiana Senate President Pro Tempore Rodric Bray told Politico, “The votes aren’t there for redistricting.”
Photo by Andrew Harnik/Getty Images
Braun’s decision to set a date may be a sign of newfound intestinal fortitude among those remaining holdouts who have been under intense pressure not only from the White House but by fellow Indianans to play to win.
Even Turning Point USA founder Charlie Kirk threatened prior to his assassination to “support primary opponents for Republicans in the Indiana State Legislature who refuse to support the team and redraw the maps,” adding that “it’s time for Republicans to be TOUGH” and not to “let California steal the 2026 house from us.”
Indiana Sen. Jim Banks (R) noted in the wake of Kirk’s passing, “They killed Charlie Kirk — the least that we can do is go through a legal process and redistrict Indiana into a nine-to-zero map.”
Indiana Lt. Gov. Micah Beckwith (R) said in a statement on Wednesday, “The people of Indiana did not elect a Republican supermajority so our Senate could cower, compromise, or collapse at the very moment courage is required. Yet, here we are again. The Indiana Republican-controlled Senate is failing to stand with President Trump, failing to defend the voice of Hoosier voters, and failing to deliver the 9-0 conservative map our citizens overwhelmingly expect.”
Beckwith suggested that his colleagues rediscover their backbones, remember who elected them to office, and “reclaim Indiana’s rightful voice in Congress by drawing a 9-0 map.”
Following Braun’s announcement, Indiana House Speaker Todd Huston (R) said in a statement obtained by WGN-TV, “We’ve received the Governor’s call for a special session and will continue having conversations within our caucus and with our counterparts in the Senate on our next steps.”
Following Braun’s announcement, Indiana Attorney General Todd Rokita indicated that he is ready to defend the new map in court once it “gets across the finish line.”
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