SALT LAKE CITY (AP) — A Utah ballot measure that would create an independent redistricting commission is virtually deadlocked after the latest batch of election results.
Results released by Tuesday evening showed the proposition was trailing by a razor thin margin with about 909,000 votes counted.
The seven-person commission would draw up maps for new congressional and state legislative districts after the 2020 census. The state Legislature would then look them over and decide whether to approve them.
In the current system, the state’s Republican-dominated Legislature passes redistricting plans by a majority vote, subject to a gubernatorial veto.
Opponents argue the measure is unconstitutional and an attempt by liberals to gain more power.
The results from the 2020 census are to be delivered to states in spring 2021, triggering a mandatory once-a-decade redistricting for U.S. House and state legislative seats to account for population changes.