Utah Lt. Governor: Prop 4 Will Not Return in 2026

In a significant victory for anti-gerrymandering advocates, Utah’s Lieutenant Governor Deidre Henderson officially declared today that the initiative to repeal the state’s independent redistricting commission has failed to qualify for the November ballot. Despite supporters initially submitting over 200,000 signatures, the effort collapsed after thousands of voters requested their names be removed from the petition.

THE NUMBERS BEHIND THE FAILURE.

To qualify for the 2026 ballot, the "Repeal of Independent Redistricting Commission and Standards Act" required signatures from 8% of active voters statewide and from 8% of voters in 26 of Utah's 29 Senate districts. While the statewide total was initially met, the count fell below the required threshold in two Senate districts after a targeted signature-removal campaign.

• Statewide Requirement: 140,748 signatures.
• Removal Impact: Approximately 9,000 voters withdrew their names, including roughly 1,000 in Salt Lake County’s Senate District 15.
• Final Ruling: The initiative was declared "insufficient" for failing to meet the geographic distribution requirement.

A HEATED POLITICAL BATTLE

The repeal effort was spearheaded by the Utah Republican Party in response to a 2025 court ruling that restored Proposition 4, the 2018 voter-approved law that created the independent commission. Better Boundaries, the group behind the original law, led the signature-removal charge, arguing that many voters had been misled into signing the repeal petition.

THE FIGHT GOES ON

The fight even reached the Utah Legislature, which passed House Bill 242 in March 2026 to make it harder for voters to withdraw signatures by invalidating removal forms sent with prepaid postage. Despite these legislative hurdles, enough removals were processed to kill the initiative. While the 2026 ballot is now clear of this measure, GOP leaders have signaled that the fight to reclaim redistricting power is "just beginning".

WASHINGTON COUNTY COMMISSIONER ADAM SNOW ON THE FAILURE TO RETURN PROP 4 TO THE BALLOT

Bill Hoster with the Washington County Republican Party agrees.
"The lieutenant governor's comment today was simply procedure we've known for about a month. We will continue to fight with integrity and faith to protect the State of Utah".