July 22, 2025
⏰ Tick Tock
Days to Utah's 2025 municipal primary elections (8/12/2025) - 21
Days until Election Day (11/4/2025) - 105
Days until the 2026 midterm elections (11/3/2026) - 469
Days until the 2028 presidential election (11/7/2028) - 1,204
Utah's congressional math adds up
Utah is poised to gain a fifth seat in Congress after the 2030 Census, according to a new analysis from a Democratic group.
The National Democratic Redistricting Committee projects Utah will gain an additional congressional seat alongside Texas, Florida, Arizona, Idaho and Georgia. Texas stands to gain three seats while Florida could secure two.
The shift in seats comes as traditionally Democratic states are set to lose representation in Congress. California is projected to lose three seats, and Illinois two. New York, Minnesota, Pennsylvania, and Rhode Island each stand to surrender one.
The report, which is a product of the Democratic-leaning group, explains that the shift of seats from blue states to red is not a reason for panic because population growth in Republican states stems largely from increases in urban areas, which tend to lean Democratic.
The authors warn that adding congressional seats in Texas and Florida could intensify gerrymandering in those states.
"Maps in several of the fastest-growing states already unfairly—and illegally—dilute the people's voting power, a problem that could worsen over the next decade as population shifts further exacerbate the impact of extreme partisan gerrymandering in these states."
"If the status quo remains, these states will likely enact maps that continue to ignore population trends and are drawn to try to lock in political power for Republicans despite those trends, resulting in even more egregious gerrymanders."
The report echoes an analysis published last year by the Brennan Center for Justice, which also concluded Utah was set to gain an additional congressional seat following the 2030 Census.
Tuesday morning's headlines
Utah and the west
Utah is still Trump territory, but support shows signs of wear. [Utah Political Watch]
Utah warned protest group against "private security" or "safety" teams at rallies, emails show. [KSL]
New guardrails added to Utah's school voucher program in response to transparency concerns. [KUTV]
Utah's water storage drops 10% in a month. [Fox 13]
Citizens group sues lieutenant governor over denied ballot initiatives. [KSL]
Utah lawmaker tapped to lead national AI task force. [Utah News Dispatch]
Utah has lost 60% of its immigration judges in a matter of months, causing growing case backlog. [KSL]
Lawsuit dismissed after judge says evidence from Tim Ballard's email cannot be used. [Fox 13]
3-year bachelor's degree programs on tap at Weber State, Utah Valley University. [Deseret News]
Reed Hastings, Powder Mountain owed investors "modest amount." Now he's being sued for $76M. [Salt Lake Tribune]
National
The House of Representatives has ground to a halt because Republicans want to avoid taking votes on forcing the release of the Jeffrey Epstein files. Democrats keep proposing amendments to force the Trump administration to release information about Epstein. [Punchbowl News]
The White House kicked the Wall Street Journal out of the pool of reporters covering President Donald Trump's trip to Scotland. The move comes after the Journal published a report alleging Trump sent a sexually suggestive message to Jeffrey Epstein in 2023. [Politico]
Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche announced Thursday he is seeking a meeting with Jeffrey Epstein associate Ghislaine Maxwell. [Axios]
The Congressional Budget Office projects that the tax cuts and spending bill passed by Congress will result in nearly 10 million more people losing health insurance by 2034. [STAT News]
GOP Rep. Mark Green resigns from Congress, further narrowing the already slim GOP majority. Republicans currently hold a 219-212 advantage over Democrats. [Fox News]
Health
The number of measles cases in Canada is nearly three times higher than the confirmed cases in the U.S. [BBC]
Business/Economy
Leading economic indicators point to a slowdown in the U.S. economy during the second half of 2025 as President Trump's tariffs take hold. [Wall Street Journal]
The price of beef has risen almost 9% since January, retailing for $9.26 a pound. [CNN]
Coca-Cola said it plans to launch a version of its product made with cane sugar. The announcement comes after President Trump said on social media he had spoken to the company about using cane sugar in its signature drink. [NBC News]
Southwest Airlines will start assigning seats to passengers on July 29. The airline will end its open seating policy on Jan. 27. [CNBC]