The fifth-ranked House Republican is facing a primary challenge from a Utah state lawmaker that has its roots in a new congressional map that effectively blocked a GOP colleague from seeking re-election, The Post has learned.
State Rep. Karianne Lisonbee will file paperwork Tuesday to challenge House Republican Conference vice chairman Rep. Blake Moore (R-Utah) in the Beehive State’s Second Congressional District — days after Moore’s colleague Burgess Owens chose not to seek another term.
All four of Utah’s House seats are held by Republicans, but the state’s independent redistricting commission has revised the map to include a Democratic-majority Fourth Congressional District centered around Salt Lake City.
Owens, who had represented the Fourth District, sued along with Rep. Celeste Moy (R-Utah) to block the new maps — only to be rejected by a federal judge.
Moore, 45, is a former co-chair of the nonprofit group known as Better Boundaries, which backed the creation of the redistricting commission — which Utah voters narrowly approved in a 2018 referendum.
“By siding with the radical-left, Blake Moore not only put a Republican majority at risk but the entire Trump agenda,” Lisonbee told The Post. “He worked with the Democrat establishment to take power away from the people’s elected representatives and put it in the hands of activist judges.
“Now everything is at risk, from border security to tax cuts,” she added. “It’s disappointing that one Utah Republican is doing more to make Hakeem Jeffries speaker than any Democrat.”
Moore, meanwhile, argued in an interview with the Deseret News this past November that Better Boundaries has strayed from its original mission to advocate for redistricting reform on a bipartisan basis.
“It was always an advisory commission, an advisory aspect of that work, that respected the Legislature’s constitutional role to redistrict,” he said.
“I think just basically from the communication that I’ve seen, it seems to be very much focused on getting a blue district, which also, in itself, is also gerrymandering,” Moore added. “It’s unfortunate that it’s gotten to that point.”
A rep for Moore’s campaign called Lisonbee’s claim “disingenuous.”
“As a member of House Republican Leadership, no one is working harder to maintain our majority,” the spokesperson said. “Blake has President Trump’s endorsement and has been working hand in hand with President Trump and Speaker [Mike] Johnson to pass the working families tax cuts, make our country safe and secure the border, establish Trump Accounts for the next generation, and focus on affordability and cost of living.
“Any insinuation that Blake is collaborating with activist judges is absurd. This is a disingenuous effort by a retiring legislator to blame Blake for a judge’s terrible decision and to draw resources away from saving our Republican majority.”
House Republicans face an uphill battle to keep their majority in the Nov. 3 midterms, with polls showing Democrats have a 4.3 percentage-point advantage on the generic congressional ballot, according to RealClearPolitics.
Moore currently represents Utah’s First District, which will become the Second District following redistricting.
Whoever wins between Moore and Lisonbee will be heavily favored to win the general election from the deep-red district in November.
“While Washington, DC, has drifted every which way, I have always stood strong as a reliable and constant conservative,” Lisonbee said in a statement announcing her candidacy.
“In the Legislature, I have always been 100% pro-life, I’ve stood against illegal immigration, I’ve strengthened Second Amendment protections, I’ve cut taxes, and I have always voted for balanced budgets.”
Lisonbee is expected to seek the GOP nomination at the state convention April 25.
