Utah gerrymandering proposal could fail to reach November ballots
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A ballot measure to effectively legalize gerrymandering in Utah hangs by a thread, as voters remove their signatures from the controversial petition drive to include the proposal in the November election.
The big picture: Statewide, more than enough voters signed onto a Republican-backed ballot measure to repeal Proposition 4, the anti-gerrymandering law that Utahns passed in 2018.
- If passed this November, the new measure would allow Republican lawmakers to redraw Utah's congressional map and eliminate the new Democratic-leaning district encompassing most of Salt Lake County.
Yes, but: Utah law also requires that ballot proposals meet specific signature thresholds in 26 of 29 Senate districts.
- Signature counts already missed the thresholds in three districts.
The latest: Now they're close to falling short in District 15, which spans parts of Cottonwood Heights, Midvale and Sandy — and is represented by Democrat Kathleen Riebe.
- State GOP chair Robert Axson didn't immediately return Axios' call for comment.
By the numbers: As of Friday morning, barely 100 signatures in that district stood between the measure's failure or success.
- 556 people there have removed their names since county clerks finished certifying signatures March 8. If another 103 withdraw by April 23, the measure won't appear on the ballot.
Between the lines: The deadline to withdraw a signature is a rolling 45 days after the name was entered.
- Many names are no longer eligible for removal, but more than 3,000 signers in District 15 can still withdraw after Monday.
Catch up quick: Signature gatherers were repeatedly accused of misrepresenting the purpose of the ballot initiative and, in some cases, submitting false signatures.
Friction point: In the final hour of the 2026 legislative session this month, state lawmakers banned Utahns from using prepaid postage to mail their signature-removal requests to their county clerks.
- That came after anti-gerrymandering campaigners sent thousands of withdrawal forms with stamped envelopes to voters.
- In Salt Lake County, the new law invalidated 285 removal requests that had already been sent.
What's next: Volunteers are joining Better Boundaries of Utah and other anti-gerrymandering groups three times per week to call signers in hopes of persuading more to remove their names.
- "Anyone who was tricked should have the opportunity to remove their name," Elizabeth Rasmussen, Better Boundaries director, told Axios.
Zoom out: The next closest margin is in District 12 — West Valley City and Kearns — which also elected a Democrat, Karen Kwan, in the last Senate election.
The intrigue: The phone banks are drawing "the youngest volunteers" organizers have seen, said Ben Haynes, spokesperson for Better Boundaries.
- "There are more people paying attention to what the Legislature is doing and who care about these issues, and I think that people showing up who traditionally don't show up, is proof of that," Haynes told Axios.