Nebraska Gov. Jim Pillen Calls For State To Switch To Winner-Take-All Electoral Vote System Which Would Benefit Trump

Nebraska Gov. Jim Pillen (R) hopes to use a state legislative session to change the state to a winner-take-all system for electoral votes, just months ahead of this year’s presidential election.

In a letter to legislative Speaker Joan Arch, Pillen asked that the special session in July, originally slated to cover issues of property-tax relief, be used instead to address the winner-take-all electoral voting system. This letter comes after Pillen used numerous gatherings around Nebraska to endorse the system.

The system’s future will be decided by Nebraska lawmakers, as 33 out of 49 senators will need to vote in favor of the bill to overcome a filibuster. Republicans currently have 33 seats but some aren’t ready to part with the over 30-year tradition of splitting electoral votes, even with the implications it would have for former President Donald Trump.

The Trump-backed effort to change the distribution of electoral votes will prove to be pivotal in the upcoming presidential election. Should President Joe Biden maintain his hold on swing states Michigan, Wisconsin and Pennsylvania in November, a single electoral vote from Nebraska would grant him the 270 votes needed to secure his re-election.

Nebraska and Maine are the only two states that split their electoral votes by congressional district. Currently in Nebraska, three electoral votes are bound to the state’s three congressional districts. These votes are granted to the candidate who wins the popular vote in that district. The other two are granted to the candidate who wins a statewide vote.

In 2020, Biden won one congressional district in Nebraska and Trump won one in Maine.

Following Pillen’s plan, there has been speculation that Maine would change its system to help  Biden secure an additional vote.