Nebraska finalizes redistricting plan

Nebraska’s Legislature finalized new boundaries for districts on September 30 after a special session. The importance of the legislative process is heightened because Nebraska is one of the only two states in the nation that splits their Electoral College votes based on the popular vote. This led to one of Nebraska’s three electoral votes cast for Biden in the 2020 election.

Redistricting takes place every ten years based on data from the Decennial Census. Boundaries must be redrawn to ensure every electoral district has an equal population.

In a majority of states, the state legislature is in control of the redistricting process. This is an important time for both political parties, as the new boundaries can affect election results for the next ten years.

Gerrymandering is shaping districts to give a political advantage to a certain party or group. 

Most elections in the United States are based on a winner-take-all system, where if a majority of a district votes for a candidate, all votes for the opposition are ignored. By drawing the district boundaries correctly, a majority voting bloc can be split up and lose representation.

Nebraska has three congressional districts. District #2 is the smallest and contains Omaha. Lincoln is in the slightly larger District #1, while District #3 covers three-fourths of mostly rural Nebraska. Republicans' first redistricting plan, Legislation Bill 1, was met with harsh criticism from Democrats. The proposal would divide Douglas County, a metropolitan area of Omaha that contains over a quarter of Nebraska’s population. This change would have made a democrat winning a congressional seat or an electoral vote in District #2 nearly impossible.

Legislation Bill 1 was blocked by a filibuster. Although Republicans hold a majority of seats in the Legislature, they did not have the number needed to end the filibuster. A two-week special session started on September 13, and legislators reached a compromise. The new map will keep Douglas County whole but adds some right-leaning suburbs and rural areas. The new boundaries will make elections harder for Democrats, but District #2 remains competitive and important for both parties in upcoming elections.

By Aubrey Benton