Prop 4 petitioners prompt debate on Logan campus
Aggies on Logan Utah State University campus lately may have noticed students holding signs either opposing or supporting Proposition 4. Prop 4 is a law in Utah created with the goal of making voting maps fairer by limiting the political influence in how they are drawn.
The law was first enacted in 2018, and now there are measures being taken to get it back on the ballot, allowing citizens to vote again on whether it should remain in use. According to the Salt Lake Tribune, Republicans have 57,437 of the 140,748 signatures needed to put the repeal on the ballot as of Jan. 26.
United States President Donald Trump posted on his social media app Truth Social on Jan. 23, encouraging followers to sign the petition to repeal Prop 4: “Utahns deserve Maps drawn by those they elect, not Rogue Judges or Leftwing Activists who never faced the Voters, and therefore, I encourage all Patriotic Utahns, Republicans, and MAGA Supporters who love their Great State and Country to sign this initiative ASAP.”
Trump also mentioned in his post the initiative must reach the required number of signatures by Feb. 15 in order for the Utahns to be able to vote on it in November. The president cited its importance in “keeping Utah red.”
Isabella Erwin is the current president of the USU chapter of the College Democrats. They are a supporter of Prop 4 and think it reaches its goal of fairer voting maps.
In their words, the goal of Prop 4 was to create an Independent Redistricting Commission for Utah, which is a body separate from the state legislature formed to draw electoral district boundaries. Although it was voted into law by Utah voters, the state legislature enacted a law that ensured the commission had only an advisory role, so they chose to use nonpartisan maps created recently.
“The Utah Republican Party, and I would say the Republican Party at large, has not been taking this lying down at all, and throughout this entire process since Prop 4 was enacted into law, have been looking for any possible way to take this power back,” Erwin said.
On Jan. 26, the Salt Lake Tribune cited a poll conducted by Embold Research that found “57% of those surveyed – including 47% of Republicans – oppose repealing Proposition 4 and the Legislature implementing its own map.”
Maggi-Lynn Perla is the coordinating vice president of the USU chapter of the College Republicans. She is in favor of putting Prop 4 back on the ballot and allowing citizens to vote on whether it should still be in use.
“It’s not about party advantage. Voters elect legislators, and legislators should be accountable, and commissions aren’t truly independent,” Perla said. “The constitution gives us the right to redistrict power to our legislature, and Proposition 4 isn’t doing that. It’s going against the constitution. Voters deserve to have clarity about who is responsible for redistricting.”
Many Democrats disagree that the goal is not power, including Erwin.
“I think it’s extremely disappointing for leaders to value their own power over the wants and demands of the people they’re supposed to be representing,” Erwin said.
Perla explained she feels the proposition takes power away from the people. Because the maps are drawn by unelected commissions, Perla thinks this makes it difficult for voters to have a say. Perla said legislators should be able to represent the people, not “random commissioners.”
Erwin went on to say gerrymandering isn’t only an issue with Republicans, depending on the state. They think it’s important there is independent redistricting across the nation and that voters choose their politicians.
“I think a lot of young people are just worried about their college classes or other temporary things, but this is something that’s going to affect their futures,” Perla said. “Utah is a big Republican state, and people should understand Utah and the history behind it, even if they don’t agree.”
More information about Prop 4 can be found on le.utah.gov.