1 week Ago
As expected, former President Donald Trump easily carried Nebraska on Tuesday on his way to being elected to the presidency for the second time. And, as expected Vice President Kamala Harris secured the “blue dot” electoral vote by defeating Trump in the Omaha-dominated 2nd Congressional District. Those results reveal, in real votes, the urban/rural split in the state that has become ever more pronounced as Lincoln and Omaha have grown over the past two decades while “greater Nebraska” has seen its population decline.
The raw numbers — Trump receiving 551,000 votes (60%) to Harris’s 353,000 (39%) — would seem to reflect overwhelming support across the state. But, 153,000 of Harris’ votes came from the 2nd District and, in Lancaster County, she picked up 75,000 more, defeating Trump by more than 5,000 votes. That’s 80% of Harris’ Nebraska support from its two most populous counties, which again have shown that they’re far from “deep red.
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That urban-rural split could be seen in real-time Tuesday night as votes were reported on the two abortion initiatives. With Omaha and Lincoln vote totals quickly released, Initiative 439, which would have instituted abortion rights, was leading Initiative 434, the abortion ban, by seemingly comfortable margins. As votes from the rest of the state came in, including those from Mountain Time polls in western Nebraska, those leads evaporated and the abortion ban, clearly opposed by urban Nebraska, is now in the state constitution.
Outside of the abortion questions, the outcomes of the initiatives reflect another reality in the one-party state’s governance. Put directly, the deeply conservative views of Republican elected officials do not reflect, or adequately represent, the opinions of their constituents. That was vividly displayed with the 70%-plus approval for the medical marijuana initiatives — a rebuke of years of legislative inaction on the proposals to authorize medical marijuana and those officials' efforts to keep it off the ballot.
Similarly, the paid sick leave initiative was needed because the Legislature, again, would not act, while the repeal of the measure that provided state funds for private schools via scholarships literally reversed the action of the Legislature and Gov. Jim Pillen, who again tried to thwart voters by forcing two initiatives to get the issue on the ballot. Now, those officials, in the legislative and executive branch, have another duty — to pass the laws and create the structures to implement medical marijuana and paid sick leave.
In the past, most notably after Nebraskans voted to expand Medicaid, the state dragged its feet for months, delaying its implementation for as long as possible. That shouldn’t be permitted to happen in either of this year’s cases — both of which have models in other states that Nebraska could follow. Elected officials should honor the voice of the people and implement the programs passed by the people.
And winners of Tuesday’s election — from the presidency to natural resource districts — should work to ensure a smooth and safe transition. Catch the latest in Opinion Get opinion pieces, letters and editorials sent directly to your inbox weekly!.
