The American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) of Nebraska has filed suit against the state on behalf of three Nebraskans with past felony convictions for blocking their voter registration.
The direction came from Secretary of State Bob Evnen, who cited a legal opinion from Nebraska Attorney General Mike Hilgers earlier this month — arguing two state laws restoring felons’ voting rights were unconstitutional — when he instructed county election offices to halt those with prior felony convictions register.
Civic Nebraska, a local non-profit civic engagement group, is also named as an organizational plaintiff in the case.
The legal team filed the lawsuit directly with the Nebraska Supreme Court this Monday morning, seeking court orders compelling certain actions from Nebraska Secretary of State Robert Evnen, including issuing voter registration applications in accordance with voter restoration statutes and addressing the wrongful disqualification of voters with past felony convictions.
The case also seeks court orders compelling local election commissioners to allow Nebraskans with past felony convictions to register to vote if they have completed all terms of their sentence and are otherwise eligible to vote, as is required under state law.
Since 2005, Nebraskans with past felony convictions have been legally able to vote two years after completing all terms of a felony sentence, including probation and parole. Earlier this year, a bipartisan majority of state lawmakers approved LB20 — removing the waiting period. Upwards of 7,000 Nebraskans were newly eligible to vote in 2024. Evnen’s direction came two days before the law was to take effect.
Hilgers asserted in his formal non-binding opinion that the Nebraska Board of Pardons — not lawmakers — have the power to restore Nebraskans’ voting rights after a felony conviction
The ACLU says the AG’s opinion cannot overturn a law passed by the Nebraska Legislature.
During a Monday press conference, two of the plaintiffs and representatives from Civic Nebraska spoke on the filing, and shared their disappointment in Evnen’s decision.
“Being able to vote is a right. Being able to be a contributing member of society is what you’re supposed to do,” said T.J. King of Omaha who wished to register. “People’s voices need to be heard. Because you made a mistake, because you paid for your mistake, and now that you’ve come out from your mistake, you should be able to vote. Every other right is afforded back to you.”
Gregory Spung, also of Omaha, said he was planning to vote this fall thanks to LB20.
“Evnen’s defiance of the new voter restoration law introduces an arcane, arbitrary and opaque clemency process for voting rights restoration. This effectively silences us from having a meaningful role in our democracy,” said Spung. “I’m hoping by participating in this lawsuit, I can help not only make sure that I can vote, but ensure that’s true for everyone in similar circumstances.”
Steve Smith, Director of Communications for Civic Nebraska, said since the passage of LB20 in mid-April, the organization has been gearing up for a robust voter registration initiative to help those ~7,000 affected Nebraskans get registered, and had that work abruptly halted just 48 hours before the law would take effect.
“[We] incurred unexpected and unnecessary costs, and the fallout from the Secretary of State’s actions has created confusion and diverted our focus away from this core mission,” said Smith. “Civic Nebraska is committed to ensuring that all eligible citizens have the opportunity to participate in the democratic process. It is well within our mission to challenge decisions such as this, that have unjustly disregarded teh civil rights of our fellow Nebraskans.”