It’s time to activate. On Thursday, Jan. 30, the Nebraska Legislature’s Government, Military and Veterans Affairs Committee will accept public testimony on two partisan proposals – LB3 and LR24CA – that seek the same result: To dismantle Nebraska’s long-standing tradition of assigning three of five electors to the presidential candidate who earns the most votes in each of our state’s three Congressional districts.
The push for a winner-take-all electoral system is rooted in partisan opportunism, frustration, and a narrow view of political power. Rather than reflecting our state’s range of electoral sensibilities, our system has been drawn into an ongoing effort to consolidate control by silencing voices that don’t align with the majority party.
The thousands of voices of fair-minded Nebraskans like you enhance our work at the statehouse. Now is the time to make your voice heard.
You need to know what will happen this week and how you can effectively advocate for keeping “The Split.”
The legislation
›› LB3, introduced by State Sen. Loren Lippincott, is a Legislative Bill. If the Government Committee were to advance it to the full Legislature, LB3 would require a simple majority of the body – 25 votes – to pass.
›› LR24CA, introduced by State Sen. Myron Dorn, is a Legislative Resolution that proposes a constitutional amendment. That requires 30 votes to pass the Legislature. If approved, it would put the matter on the 2026 statewide general election ballot.
On Thursday
The Government Committee will convene at 1:30 pm CST in Room 1507 of the Nebraska State Capitol. If you plan to attend, you should:
›› Show up early. The nature of these proposals makes them a proxy war between Republicans and Democrats. This means the hearing will be well-attended by both supporters and opponents. Before arriving, review how committee hearings are run. Also, this tipsheet offers excellent advice on how to participate best.
›› Limit prepared comments to three minutes. Here is a resource that estimates the reading time of written comments. You may wish to practice in advance to ensure you can deliver complete remarks. NOTE: This is a combined hearing, meaning the committee will not hear separate testimony for each measure. In other words, you can testify once, which will apply to both proposals.
›› Know your argument. Here are some materials to help shape opponent testimony. However, please use your own words.
›› Dress appropriately. We recommend refraining from clothing, hats, or accessories that are overtly partisan or frame the issue as yet another zero-sum battle between Republicans and Democrats. Civic Nebraska opposes introducing winner-take-all for various reasons, but advocating for one political party over another is not one of them.
If you can’t make it in person
Please submit your opposition online via the Committee’s web portal. This must be done before 8 am CST on Thursday, Jan. 30, to be officially recorded. Please share the link with every fair-minded Nebraskan and encourage them to do the same.
›› Submit your opposition to LB3 online
›› Submit your opposition to LR24CA online
Are you getting an error message on those pages? Click here and scroll to the appropriate day, find LB3 and LR24CA, and submit your comments.
Be sure to fill out the form completely. Incomplete submissions will be discarded.
Specific opposition to LR24CA
›› Your opposition to LR24CA – the proposed amendment to our state constitution that would trigger a statewide referendum if passed – may be challenged by some winner-take-all proponents as anti-democratic. But fair-minded Nebraskans cannot support exploiting a time-honored tool of direct democracy to make Nebraska fundamentally less democratic. That’s what winner-take-all does: It silences a significant portion of Nebraska’s electorate and undermines the principle of fair representation.
›› Not only is a statewide referendum unnecessary, it also invites massive amounts of out-of-state spending and politicizes Nebraska’s electoral system for partisan benefit. The state has already experienced the divisive and disruptive influence of such spending during the contentious electoral battles of 2024; campaigns flooded Nebraska with polarizing rhetoric and left our communities more fractured. Repeating that chaos is not in anyone’s best interest.
This is just Round 1
›› Once the hearing ends, the Committee will privately consider both measures. It has three options: It can vote to advance one or both to the entire Legislature for consideration, vote against moving it to the whole body, or decide to take no action.
We’d be overjoyed if this was the end of discussion about this needlessly divisive legislation, but given the current political reality, we are preparing for a floor fight. Follow our social channels (below), check our website, and watch for future emails on what you can do if either or both measures move on to the entire state senate.
If you’re especially passionate about the issue, you can help us fuel the fight by ordering a DEFEND THE SPLIT t-shirt. Some proceeds will go toward our advocacy to protect our current electoral vote system.
Thanks for all that you do!
– Your friends and neighbors at Civic Nebraska
