“Key Nebraska Republican Rejects Trump’s Bid to Alter Electoral Vote System”
A Republican-backed effort, spearheaded by former President Donald Trump, to shift Nebraska’s electoral process to a winner-take-all system encountered a significant obstacle on Monday. State Senator Mike McDonnell, a key Republican holdout, announced he would not support any changes to the electoral process before the upcoming November election.
McDonnell stated in a release that he believes the legislature should revisit this issue during next year’s session, which is scheduled to begin in January 2025. “In recent weeks, a conversation around changing how we allocate our Electoral College votes has resurfaced,” McDonnell said. “I respect the desire of some of my colleagues to discuss this matter, but after careful consideration and listening to both Nebraskans and national leaders, it is clear that 43 days from Election Day is not the right time for such a change.”
He further emphasized his long-standing opposition to altering the electoral college system before the 2024 election, suggesting instead that a constitutional amendment be proposed to allow Nebraskans to decide this issue through a ballot initiative.
Governor Jim Pillen, a Republican, indicated last week that he would not convene a special session unless Republican lawmakers could demonstrate they have the necessary 33 votes to overcome a likely Democratic filibuster. U.S. Senator Lindsey Graham, a South Carolina Republican and Trump ally, visited Nebraska last week to lobby for the change and met with local stakeholders.
Nebraska Representative Mike Flood acknowledged McDonnell’s critical role as a holdout and noted that at least three additional votes would be needed to counter the anticipated filibuster. Flood, who supports changing the process alongside Nebraska’s federal delegation, stated that the state deserves to reflect the majority opinion of its citizens through legislative action.
The proposed winner-take-all change would be crucial for the Republican Party, allowing Nebraska to allocate all five of its electoral votes to Trump, instead of splitting them with Vice President Kamala Harris. In the 2020 election, Nebraska split its electoral votes, with President Joe Biden winning the 2nd District, which includes Omaha. Without securing votes from this district, Harris’s chances of winning would be significantly diminished, even with support from the “Blue Wall” states of Wisconsin, Michigan, and Pennsylvania. The change could also pave the way for a 269-269 tie in the Electoral College.
“It’s remarkable to consider that Nebraska could play such a pivotal role,” Flood remarked.
Later that day, Trump expressed gratitude to Governor Pillen for his efforts to “simplify the complexity” of the state’s electoral map, while criticizing McDonnell for his opposition. On his social media platform, Trump called McDonnell a “Grandstander,” asserting that the lawmaker was impeding a sensible Republican victory.
“I would like to thank Governor Jim Pillen of Nebraska for trying to help the Republican Party simplify the complexity of the state’s Electoral Map,” Trump wrote. “It would have been better, and far less expensive, for everyone! Unfortunately, a Democrat-turned-Republican(?) State Senator named Mike McDonnell decided, for no reason whatsoever, to get in the way of a great Republican, common-sense victory. Just another ‘Grandstander!'”
