Nebraska‘s electoral system in presidential contests has caught the ire of state Republicans who want it overhauled, but as efforts in the legislature continue to fail, they may go straight to the voters.
The Cornhusker State voted overwhelmingly for President Donald Trump at the statewide level last year, but because the state issues its electoral votes by congressional district, along with two at-large votes for the statewide vote, former Vice President Kamala Harris won one electoral vote. Harris’s one electoral vote victory came in the state’s 2nd Congressional District, where she defeated Trump, 51.3%-46.7%, while Trump won Nebraska’s four other electoral votes.
Nebraska is one of two states that award electoral votes based on congressional districts rather than all of the votes going to the winner of the statewide election. Lawmakers are seeking to again revert the system to a winner-take-all, through a bill introduced in the state’s legislature.
LB3, which was introduced at the request of Gov. Jim Pillen (R-NE), would award the state’s five electoral votes to the winner of the statewide total.
“Our experiment with the current system of electoral vote allocation has divided Nebraska and diminished our voice in the most important national exercise in democracy that we undertake — electing a Commander-in-Chief. The time is now to fix this, well in advance of the next presidential election cycle. Restoring winner-take-all has my full support, and I look forward to signing it into law,” Pillen said when the bill was filed last month.
Lawmakers unsuccessfully tried to change the electoral system ahead of last year’s elections but failed to garner the required support to clear a filibuster in the chamber. While Republicans hold a supermajority in the chamber, one GOP lawmaker said he would not support the measure.
“It’s a poison pill for my district,” said Republican state Sen. Merv Riepe, according to the Associated Press.
If the proposal to pass the change through the legislature does not succeed, Republican state Sen. Myron Dorn offered another bill that would put the question of changing the system before the voters in the 2026 election.
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Riepe has not said whether he would support the alternative proposal but told the outlet it would be “seen as a more democratic way of doing it.”
The Nebraska legislature, which has only one chamber, is scheduled to be in session through the end of May.