CLC Responds to Nebraska State Officials Stripping Away Freedom to Vote

Lincoln, NE — The freedom to vote for tens of thousands of Nebraskans with prior felony convictions now hangs in the balance after Attorney General Mike Hilgers issued an opinion that takes Nebraska backward on voting rights.

At least 59,000 of the voters who would be impacted by this decision have had their freedom to vote for almost 20 years.

Blair Bowie, director of Campaign Legal Center (CLC)’s Restore Your Vote program, issued the following statement in response:

“Nebraska’s attorney general and secretary of state are taking Nebraska backward and stripping the freedom to vote away from tens of thousands of citizens. Felony disenfranchisement laws have long been a stain on American democracy. AG Hilgers’ opinion undermines the will of the Legislature to restore voting rights to Nebraskans who have completed their sentences. The opinion unjustly strips the well-settled right to vote from tens of thousands of Nebraskans and will create widespread confusion around voter eligibility right before a major election,” said Blair Bowie, director of Campaign Legal Center’s Restore Your Vote program. “All citizens, regardless of whether they have a felony conviction, should have the freedom to vote.”

Nebraskans with past felony convictions can use CLC’s Restore Your Vote tool to help understand their voting rights.