The state of Nebraska has a very unique legislature compared to all other states. In 1934, Nebraskans voted to abolish the bicameral legislature and operate the legislative branch as a unicameral body with lawmakers elected in a nonpartisan open primary election. This change became a Nebraska tradition where state lawmakers took the directive from voters rather than party-lines.
We are proud to have Nonpartisan Nebraska preserving the nonpartisan structure of the Nebraska Legislature through public education, historical and rule-based research focused on Nebraska’s unique one-house institution.
Nonpartisan Nebraska was established in 2016 as a Facebook group. Founders Nathan Leach, Justin Otoski and James Woody put out information about the Nebraska legislature to the public through the page. After a few years of the group existing, the demand for education and understanding of the unicameral significantly grew. People wanted to know what rules mean, how they are changed and how a proper operation of debate goes. In 2020, Nonpartisan Nebraska became an official nonprofit organization, gaining capacity to answer those questions and help enforce the rules of the unicameral.
The operations of the organization include interfacing with the offices of legislators, clerks and the speaker to understand where the rules are. If there is a concern about any rule or norm violation, Nonpartisan Nebraska will help point out the issue, keeping rushed and potentially harmful bills from the floor.
Most people are not sure how the legislature operates but board chair James Woody says, “We communicate with stakeholders and the public about how it's supposed to work.” Breaking down the rules and procedures preserves the healthy and unique system of the unicameral by keeping our representatives accountable.
In a recent cooperative project with Vote Wise Nebraska ahead of the 2025 Lincoln city elections, Nonpartisan Nebraska created a comprehensive voting guide with everything a Lincolnite would need to know for their upcoming election. The guide covered the voter registration process, voting accessibility accommodations, what is on the ballot and explaining the offices being voted on.
Executive Director of Vote Wise Nebraska Tommy Blanton shared his vision of civic education with James, drawing on what he learned about the state of Oregon where the Secretary of State sends a nonpartisan voter guide to every registered voter in the mail. Tommy seeked a way to do the same in Nebraska but not alone. Together Nonpartisan Nebraska and Vote Wise Nebraska created the voter guides and distributed them to 20,000 voter-eligible Lincoln households. In the future, the goal is to send a guide to all households in Lincoln and, one day, the state.
Nonpartisan Nebraska continues to be involved in breaking down local government and political processes. With their current partnerships, the organization is looking to develop educational tools to engage more people on the local level and let voters know what they are voting for.
Elections, whether federal, state or local, are more than about voting along party lines, James says. “In Nebraska we are uniquely positioned to solve the problem. There will be an opportunity for us to make better decisions as voters, to send people to the legislature who can compromise and work together.”