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A Nebraska Republican state lawmaker mentioned Monday that he stays against switching how the state allocates its electoral votes — a blow to former President Donald Trump and his allies, who’re looking for the change in a bid for an additional electoral vote this fall.
“After deep consideration, it’s clear to me that proper now, 43 days from Election Day, shouldn’t be the second to make this modification,” state Sen. Mike McDonnell wrote in a letter obtained by NBC Information.
McDonnell represents an Omaha-area state Senate district. He’s reportedly weighing a run for Omaha mayor. A former Democrat, he switched parties in April, changing into a Republican, after state Democrats censured him.
His announcement is the newest growth in months of deliberations over whether or not Nebraska lawmakers may change the best way the state apportions its electoral votes in a manner that will profit Trump.
Nebraska allocates its electoral votes by congressional district. The swing district round Omaha has twice gone to Democrats lately, giving them one electoral vote from an in any other case ruby-red state.
But when lawmakers modified that to a winner-take-all mannequin, Trump can be all however sure to win all of Nebraska’s electoral votes.
And there is a believable state of affairs during which that might decide who turns into the subsequent president.
For instance, if Vice President Kamala Harris were to win Michigan, Pennsylvania and Wisconsin but lose every other swing state, she and Trump can be tied at 269 Electoral Faculty votes underneath a winner-take-all setup in Nebraska with Trump successful the state.
In that state of affairs, the race would be thrown to the U.S. House, where every state delegation would get one vote for president. Republicans maintain a majority of delegations and are favored to retain it, despite the fact that the Home majority may change fingers after the November election.
Nevertheless, if Nebraska didn’t change its apportionment mode and if Harris had been to win Michigan, Pennsylvania and Wisconsin however lose each different swing state, she would win the presidential election with 270 electoral votes.
Nebraska Democrats lauded McDonnell’s announcement.
“Nebraska has a protracted and proud custom of independence, and our electoral system displays that by making certain that the end result of our elections really represents the desire of the folks with out interference,” Nebraska Democratic Social gathering chair Jane Kleeb mentioned.
“Senator McDonnell is standing robust in opposition to great stress from out-of-state pursuits to guard Nebraskans’ voice in our democracy. On this election and people to come back, Nebraskans will proceed to cleared the path by electing leaders at each degree who get up for the folks and respect our spirit of independence,” Kleeb added.
McDonnell’s announcement comes as Trump allies have labored behind the scenes to push for a particular legislative session meant for the Republican-controlled Legislature to work to vary the states apportionment procedures.
Final week, Sen Lindsey Graham, R-S.C., a Trump ally, met with Nebraska Gov. Jim Pillen and about two dozen Republican legislators to debate how the state allocates its electoral votes, in accordance with a supply with direct data of the journey.
Graham, appearing on behalf of the Trump marketing campaign, was working to encourage Pillen to name a particular legislative session at which lawmakers may contemplate altering the state’s apportionment of electoral votes, the supply instructed NBC Information.
Proponents of the winner-take-all mannequin would wish 33 votes within the state Senate to beat a filibuster to maneuver ahead with the change. Whereas the state’s unicameral legislature is technically nonpartisan, Republicans do have a 33-seat majority because of McDonnell’s current social gathering flip. However that slender margin means Republicans cannot transfer ahead with out him.
Pillen has mentioned that he has not but “obtained the concrete and public indication that 33 [state] senators would vote” for the winner-take-all system.
State lawmakers told the Nebraska Examiner last week that they estimated that the change had the assist of 30 or 31 state senators, which means they remained two to 3 votes brief. McDonnell had been certainly one of them. State Sen. Merv Riepe had been considered one other. The Washington Post reported last week that Riepe now helps the change to a winner-take-all system.
The newfound curiosity in Nebraska’s Electoral Faculty votes comes months after Republicans tried, and failed, to make the change this spring. Again then, a pressure campaign backed by Pillen, Trump and pro-Trump influencer Charlie Kirk fell short on procedural grounds, because it lacked assist from sufficient senators to beat a filibuster.
Ever for the reason that state modified the best way it allotted its Electoral Faculty votes greater than 30 years in the past, lawmakers have repeatedly tried to vary again to awarding all of Nebraska’s votes to the statewide winner. An effort to take action handed in 1995, but it surely was vetoed by the governor. One other effort fell only one vote brief in 2016.
Maine is the one different state that doesn’t have a winner-take-all system for electoral votes. However whereas Maine Democrats have mentioned switching its system in response if Nebraska made a change, they appear to have run out of time to make a counter-move for 2024.
