Utah Supreme Court hears partisan gerrymandering challenge to congressional districts

The Utah Supreme Court is weighing arguments over whether a lower court can evaluate whether the Republican-majority statehouse violated the Utah Constitution in drawing new congressional districts two years ago. State Supreme Court justices on Tuesday lobbed questions at attorneys for the state and the seven voters suing over maps they claim dilute their voting power and violate the state Constitution. The case is the latest state-based challenge to so-called partisan gerrymandering and comes weeks after a high-profile U.S. Supreme Court ruling denied the North Carolina Legislature nearly absolute power in drawing political maps in that state.