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Nebraska, Secretary of State

Nebraska held an election for secretary of state on November 6, 2018. The candidate filing deadline was March 1, 2018.

SETTING THE STAGE
  • Heading into the 2018 election, the sitting secretary of state was John A. Gale (R), who was first appointed to the position in 2000 following the resignation of Scott Moore. Gale was elected to a full term in 2002 and was re-elected in 2006, 2010, and 2014. Gale announced on March 20, 2017, that he would not seek a fifth full term in 2018.
  • At the time of the 2018 election, Nebraska was a Republican trifecta. It first gained this status when former Gov. Mike Johanns (R) took office in 1999. At the time of the 2018 election, Nebraska was a Republican triplex.
  • Nebraska was won by the Republican candidate in each of the past five presidential elections leading up to the 2018 election. The widest margin of victory was George W. Bush's 33 percent margin in 2004 while the narrowest was John McCain's 15 percent margin in 2008.

  • State election history

    This section provides an overview of federal and state elections in Nebraska from 2000 to 2016. All data comes from the Nebraska Secretary of State.

    Historical elections

    Presidential elections, 2000-2016

    This chart shows the results of the presidential election in Nebraska every year from 2000 to 2016.

    Election results (President of the United States), Nebraska 2000-2016

    Year First-place candidate First-place candidate votes (%) Second-place candidate Second-place candidate votes (%) Margin of victory (%)
    2016 Republican Party Donald Trump 58.7% Democratic Party Hillary Clinton 33.7% 25.0%
    2012 Republican Party Mitt Romney 59.8% Democratic Party Barack Obama 38.0% 21.8%
    2008 Republican Party John McCain 56.5% Democratic Party Barack Obama 41.6% 14.9%
    2004 Republican Party George W. Bush 65.9% Democratic Party John Kerry 32.7% 33.2%
    2000 Republican Party George W. Bush 62.2% Democratic Party Al Gore 33.3% 28.9%

    U.S. Senate elections, 2000-2016

    This chart shows the results of U.S. Senate races in Nebraska from 2000 to 2016. Every state has two Senate seats, and each seat goes up for election every six years. The terms of the seats are staggered so that roughly one-third of the seats are up every two years.

    Election results (U.S. Senator), Nebraska 2000-2016

    Year First-place candidate First-place candidate votes (%) Second-place candidate Second-place candidate votes (%) Margin of victory (%)
    2014 Republican Party Ben Sasse 64.3% Democratic Party Dave Domina 31.5% 32.8%
    2012 Republican Party Deb Fischer 57.8% Democratic Party Bob Kerrey 42.2% 15.6%
    2008 Republican Party Mike Johanns 57.5% Democratic Party Scott Kleeb 40.1% 17.4%
    2006 Democratic Party Ben Nelson 63.9% Republican Party Pete Ricketts 36.1% 27.8%
    2002 Republican Party Chuck Hagel 82.3% Democratic Party Charlie Matulka 14.6% 67.7%
    2000 Democratic Party Ben Nelson 51.1% Republican Party Don Stenberg 48.9% 2.2%

    Gubernatorial elections, 2000-2016

    This chart shows the results of the four gubernatorial elections held between 2000 and 2016. Gubernatorial elections are held every four years in Nebraska.

    Election results (Governor), Nebraska 2000-2016

    Year First-place candidate First-place candidate votes (%) Second-place candidate Second-place candidate votes (%) Margin of victory (%)
    2014 Republican Party Pete Ricketts 57.2% Democratic Party Chuck Hassebrook 39.2% 18.0%
    2010 Republican Party Dave Heineman 73.9% Democratic Party Mike Meister 26.1% 47.8%
    2006 Republican Party Dave Heineman 73.4% Democratic Party David Hahn 24.5% 48.9%
    2002 Republican Party Mike Johanns 68.7% Democratic Party Stormy Dean 27.5% 41.2%

    Congressional delegation, 2000-2016

    This chart shows the number of Democrats and Republicans who were elected to represent Nebraska in the U.S. House from 2000 to 2016. Elections for U.S. House seats are held every two years.

    Congressional delegation, Nebraska 2000-2016

    Year Republicans Republicans (%) Democrats Democrats (%) Balance of power
    2016 Republican Party 3 100% Democratic Party 0 0% R+3
    2014 Republican Party 2 66.7% Democratic Party 1 33.3% R+1
    2012 Republican Party 3 100% Democratic Party 0 0% R+3
    2010 Republican Party 3 100% Democratic Party 0 0% R+3
    2008 Republican Party 3 100% Democratic Party 0 0% R+3
    2006 Republican Party 3 100% Democratic Party 0 0% R+3
    2004 Republican Party 3 100% Democratic Party 0 0% R+3
    2002 Republican Party 3 100% Democratic Party 0 0% R+3
    2002 Republican Party 3 100% Democratic Party 0 0% R+3

    Trifectas, 1992-2017

    A state government trifecta occurs when one party controls the state legislature and the governor's office.

    Nebraska Party Control: 1992-2020
    Seven years of Democratic trifectasTwenty-two years of Republican trifectas

    Year 92 93 94 95 96 97 98 99 00 01 02 03 04 05 06 07 08 09 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20
    Governor D D D D D D D R R R R R R R R R R R R R R R R R R R R R R
    Senate - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -


    Demographics

    Demographic data for Nebraska

    NebraskaU.S.
    Total population:1,893,765316,515,021
    Land area (sq mi):76,8243,531,905
    Gender
    Female:50.3%50.8%
    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)
    for more information on the 2020 census and here for more on its impact on the redistricting process in Nebraska.

    As of July 2017, Nebraska had a population of approximately 1,920,000 people, with its three largest cities being Omaha (pop. est. 450,000), Lincoln (pop. est. 280,000), and Bellevue (pop. est. 54,000).