I believe elections should reflect what Nebraskans actually want — not what's convenient for the parties already in power. When voters go to the trouble of gathering thousands of signatures to put new choices on the ballot, the least our state can do is count those signatures fairly and transparently.
This week, two new political parties — the Nebraska Working People Party and another group — submitted somewhere between 23,000 and more signatures to the Secretary of State's office to qualify for the November 2026 general election. Both appear to have cleared the legal threshold on paper. But right now, verification is still pending, and there's no public timeline for when Nebraskans will know whether these parties made the cut. That uncertainty isn't good for voters, and it's not good for trust in our elections. People who spent months collecting those signatures — their neighbors, their coworkers — deserve a clear, honest answer before the ballot is finalized.
Competition is good. It keeps everyone sharper. When voters have more real choices, candidates work harder to earn those votes. I'm not asking you to endorse either of these parties — I'm asking you to make sure the process is fair. Urge the Secretary of State's office to complete the signature verification promptly and publicly, and to make the results available for review so Nebraskans can see that every valid signature was counted and no valid petition was buried. Please speak up now to protect open and transparent ballot access for Nebraska voters.
