Secretary of State Bob Evnen fully concurs with Nebraska Attorney General Doug Peterson’s decision to have Nebraska join with 16 other states in support of the U.S. Supreme Court lawsuit filed by the State of Texas. The Texas lawsuit was filed on Monday, December 7, 2020, against the states of Georgia, Michigan, Wisconsin, and Pennsylvania.
The brief, which was filed by Missouri Attorney General Eric Schmitt and signed by 17 total States, focused its arguments on (1) the separation-of-powers principles requiring that all changes to state election laws be made only by state legislatures and (2) the need for election safeguards to minimize the risks of voting irregularities.
“The Supreme Court has recognized that in presidential elections ‘the impact of the votes cast in each State is affected by the votes cast . . . in other States,’” said Nebraska Attorney General Doug Peterson. “This means that Nebraskans—no less than citizens in other States—have a strong interest in ensuring that presidential elections comply with the Constitution. This is an important interest that my office takes very seriously.”
One month ago, on November 9, 2020, the State of Nebraska joined an amicus brief in the U.S. Supreme Court in a case challenging the Pennsylvania Supreme Court’s decision to extend the deadline for absentee ballots beyond election day. That decision violates the Constitution’s separation-of-powers principle that only state legislatures—not state courts—have the authority to adopt or change election rules for choosing the President. The Supreme Court has yet to decide whether they will hear this case.
“I fully concur with the Attorney General’s decision to have the State of Nebraska join as an amicus in this case,” said Secretary of State Bob Evnen. “It is absolutely essential that credible claims of election irregularities be brought to light and fully investigated.”
The Texas lawsuit claims that each of those states unconstitutionally attempted to revise their states’ election statutes, removing protections that would guard against improprieties in voting by mail.
“It is absolutely essential that credible claims of election improprieties be brought to light and fully investigated,” Evnen said. “Tens of millions of Americans have been left wondering about the integrity of our elections. The success of our representative democracy requires that legitimate concerns about the election be properly addressed. The Texas lawsuit is an effort to do so.”
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