Wright stepped down from her position this week to take a full-time role with the Utah Donor Collaborative.
Utahns for Responsive Government formed in 2017 as the launchpad for the Better Boundaries initiative. Its purpose was to get a citizen’s initiative on the 2018 ballot to establish an independent redistricting commission for drawing Utah’s voting district maps.
Proposition Four was approved by 50% of voters, but the Utah Legislature later repealed it and made the independent commission only an advisory body. Lawmakers also undercut Prop 4’s ban on gerrymandering and removed a requirement that a legislative boundary committee follow certain standards.
In response Better Boundaries transitioned from a temporary, single-issue initiative organization to become a permanent citizen rights advocacy group.
In 2021, Katie Wright stepped in to serve as director of Better Boundaries to raise the money to support the plaintiffs who had filed an anti-gerrymandering lawsuit challenging the legislature’s changes.
Last year, the Utah Supreme Court made two rulings in favor of the plaintiffs. Wright said they’re still waiting for a resolution of the lawsuit.
“On January 31, of this year, we had a hearing with the 3rd District Court,” Wright said, “and there was a request from the plaintiffs, who are League of Women Voters Utah and Mormon Women for Ethical Government, for the court to rule that the maps violate our constitutional rights, that the repeal of proposition for which the citizens passed is unconstitutional, and to create a process to put a fair congressional map in place for 2026 so that request is out and we are waiting for news from the court.”
While Wright makes her departure as the state legislature wraps up for this year, she said she remains concerned about some of the bills filed this year – what she calls more “power grabs.” She said lawmakers attempted to make it harder to launch citizen ballot initiatives and went after the independence of the judiciary in an attempt to amass power in the legislative branch.
“And it doesn't really matter what your political background and beliefs are,” she said. “That's dangerous. We have three branches of government because checks and balances are fundamental to a democracy, and I think that everyone should be concerned with this power grab in all different policies and forms.”
For those who are also concerned, she said, vocal, principled dissent can be effective to show elected representatives the public opposition. A group of protesters is meeting at the State Capitol south steps on Monday at 5:30 p.m. to do that.
