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Nebraska state executive official elections, 2016
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None Down Ballot Public Service Commission (2) |
One state executive office in Nebraska
was
up for election in 2016.
Two seats on the Nebraska Public Service Commission were effectively decided in the Republican primary election held on May 10, 2016. No Democrats filed to run in either district, making Rod Johnson and Mary Ridder the presumptive winners of the general election on November 8, 2016.
Context of the 2016 elections
Public Service Commission
The Nebraska Public Service Commission has five members who are elected from five districts across the state in partisan elections.[1] Republicans have had a 4-1 seat majority on the commission for several years. Previous elections have shown that Districts 1, 3, 4, and 5 favor Republican candidates, while Democrats have won District 2 for at least the past 20 years.
Districts 4 and 5 were up for re-election in 2016. District 4 largely covers counties in central Nebraska and has been held by incumbent Rod Johnson since he was first elected commissioner in 1992. He ran for a fifth term on the commission. District 5 largely consists of western Nebraska and has been held by incumbent Gerald L. Vap since his appointment in 2001. He was elected to full terms in 2004 and 2010 and unsuccessfully ran for a third full term on the commission. No Democratic candidates filed to run in either district, which ensured that Republicans would continue to hold a 4-1 majority on the commission after the 2016 elections.
Party control
Going into the 2016 election, Nebraska is one of 23 Republican state government trifectas, meaning that both the governor's office and the state legislature is controlled by the Republican Party. Nebraska's state legislature is unique in that it is the only state legislature in the United States that is nonpartisan and features only one legislative chamber instead of two. Although this unicameral legislature is officially nonpartisan, almost all state senators in Nebraska have a direct party affiliation and a supermajority of them are affiliated with the GOP.
The popularity for Republicans applies to federal elections as well. Nebraska has not voted for a Democratic presidential candidate since Lyndon Johnson's successful re-election bid in 1964. However, President Obama won one of Nebraska's five electoral college votes in 2008 by winning the popular vote in a congressional district. Going into the 2016 elections, both of Nebraska's United States senators were Republicans, as well as two out of its three members of the U.S. House of Representatives.
Finally, Republicans also have considerable control over state executive offices. Republicans have controlled the governor's office since 1999. Other offices, such as Nebraska Treasurer, Nebraska Attorney General, and Nebraska Secretary of State are held by Republicans.
Elections
Public Service Commission
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Voter registration
February 16, 2016 |
March 1, 2016 |
May 10, 2016 |
July 15, 2016 |
August 1, 2016 |
November 8, 2016 |
TBD |
TBD |
For full information about voting in Nebraska, contact the state election agency.
Registration
To vote in Nebraska, you must meet the following requirements:[2]
| “ |
☐ You must be a citizen of the United States. |
” |
Online registration
- See also: Online voter registration
Nebraska does not permit online voter registration.
Past elections
2015
There were no state executive elections in Nebraska in 2015.
2014
Seven state executive offices were up for election including governor, lieutenant governor, attorney general, secretary of state, treasurer, auditor and one seat on the Nebraska Public Service Commission.
- Nebraska Attorney General election, 2014
- Nebraska gubernatorial and lieutenant gubernatorial election, 2014
- Nebraska state executive official elections, 2014
- Nebraska Secretary of State election, 2014
- Nebraska down ballot state executive elections, 2014
2013
There were no elections in Nebraska in 2013.
2012
Two seats on the Nebraska Public Service Commission were up for election.
State profile
| Demographic data for Nebraska | ||
|---|---|---|
| Nebraska | U.S. | |
| Total population: | 1,893,765 | 316,515,021 |
| Land area (sq mi): | 76,824 | 3,531,905 |
| Race and ethnicity** | ||
| White: | 88.1% | 73.6% |
| Black/African American: | 4.7% | 12.6% |
| Asian: | 2% | 5.1% |
| Native American: | 0.9% | 0.8% |
| Pacific Islander: | 0.1% | 0.2% |
| Two or more: | 2.2% | 3% |
| Hispanic/Latino: | 10% | 17.1% |
| Education | ||
| High school graduation rate: | 90.7% | 86.7% |
| College graduation rate: | 29.3% | 29.8% |
| Income | ||
| Median household income: | $52,997 | $53,889 |
| Persons below poverty level: | 14.6% | 11.3% |
| Source: U.S. Census Bureau, "American Community Survey" (5-year estimates 2010-2015) Click here for more information on the 2020 census and here for more on its impact on the redistricting process in Nebraska. **Note: Percentages for race and ethnicity may add up to more than 100 percent because respondents may report more than one race and the Hispanic/Latino ethnicity may be selected in conjunction with any race. Read more about race and ethnicity in the census here. | ||
Presidential voting pattern
- See also: Presidential voting trends in Nebraska
Nebraska voted Republican in all seven presidential elections between 2000 and 2024.
Pivot Counties (2016)
Ballotpedia identified 206 counties that voted for Donald Trump (R) in 2016 after voting for Barack Obama (D) in 2008 and 2012. Collectively, Trump won these Pivot Counties by more than 580,000 votes. Of these 206 counties, one is located in Nebraska, accounting for 0.5 percent of the total pivot counties.[4]
Pivot Counties (2020)
In 2020, Ballotpedia re-examined the 206 Pivot Counties to view their voting patterns following that year's presidential election. Ballotpedia defined those won by Trump won as Retained Pivot Counties and those won by Joe Biden (D) as Boomerang Pivot Counties. Nationwide, there were 181 Retained Pivot Counties and 25 Boomerang Pivot Counties. Nebraska had one Retained Pivot County, 0.55 percent of all Retained Pivot Counties.
More Nebraska coverage on Ballotpedia
- Elections in Nebraska
- United States congressional delegations from Nebraska
- Public policy in Nebraska
- Endorsers in Nebraska
- Nebraska fact checks
- More...
See also
| Nebraska | State Executive Elections | News and Analysis |
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External links
Footnotes
- ↑ Nebraska Public Service Commission, "History of the Commission," accessed April 24, 2011
- ↑ Nebraska Secretary of State, "A Guide for Registering to Vote and Voting in Nebraska," accessed June 10, 2014
- ↑ Note: This text is quoted verbatim from the original source. Any inconsistencies are attributable to the original source.
- ↑ The raw data for this study was provided by Dave Leip of Atlas of U.S. Presidential Elections.
