Nebraska Supreme Court elections, 2016
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| 2016 State Judicial Elections |
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| Part 1: Overview |
| Part 2: Supreme Courts |
| Part 3: Partisanship |
| Part 4: Changes in 2016 |
Last updated: November 2016
Three seats on the Nebraska Supreme Court were up for retention elections on November 8, 2016. Chief Justice Michael Heavican, Justice John Wright, and Justice William Cassel faced retention elections. If retained, a supreme court justice serves for six years prior to the next retention election.
Judges who faced retention
Election results
November 8 general election
Michael Heavican was retained with 73.37% of the vote.
| Nebraska Supreme Court, Heavican's seat, 2016 | ||
|---|---|---|
| Name | Yes votes | |
 Michael Heavican | 73.37% | |
| Source: Nebraska Secretary of State Official Results | ||
John Wright was retained in the Nebraska Supreme Court, Wright's seat election with 75.61% of the vote.
| Nebraska Supreme Court, Wright's seat, 2016 | ||
|---|---|---|
| Name | Yes votes | |
| John Wright | 75.61% | |
| Source: Nebraska Secretary of State Official Results | ||
William Cassel was retained with 72.65% of the vote.
| Nebraska Supreme Court, Cassel's seat, 2016 | ||
|---|---|---|
| Name | Yes votes | |
| William Cassel | 72.65% | |
| Source: Nebraska Secretary of State Official Results | ||
Political composition
Justices on the Nebraska Supreme Court are nonpartisan and appointed to their seats. Justice Lindsey Miller-Lerman and Justice John Wright were appointed by Gov. Ben Nelson (D). The remaining five justices were appointed by Republican governors Dave Heineman and Pete Ricketts.
| ■ Chief Justice Michael Heavican | Appointed by Dave Heineman (R) in 2006 | |
| ■ William Cassel | Appointed by Dave Heineman (R) in 2012 | |
| ■ Jeffrey Funke | Appointed by Pete Ricketts (R) in 2016 | |
| ■ Max Kelch | Appointed by Pete Ricketts (R) in 2016 | |
| ■ Lindsey Miller-Lerman | Appointed by Ben Nelson (D) in 1998 | |
| ■ Stephanie Stacy | Appointed by Pete Ricketts (R) in 2015 | |
| ■ John Wright | Appointed by Ben Nelson (D) in 1994 |
Selection
- See also: Judicial selection in Nebraska
The court consists of a chief justice and six associate justices. Each associate justice represents one of six districts. Judges are selected using an assisted appointment system. When vacancies occur, a judicial nominating commission holds a hearing to interview candidates to replace the departed judge. The commission is made up of four lawyers and four non-lawyers selected by the Nebraska State Bar Association. The commission chooses at least two candidates to submit to the governor, who has 60 days to make an appointment. If the governor does not appoint someone in time, the chief justice is responsible for choosing one of the commission's nominees.[1]
Judges who wish to retain their seats must run for retention in the first general election occurring more than three years after appointment. Judges are then subject to retention every six years. Voters are asked to answer the question, "Shall Judge___________be retained in office?" To remove a judge, more than 50 percent of voters must indicate they do not want the judge to be retained.[1]
Judges may retire at 65 years old, but there is no mandatory retirement age in the state.[1]
Qualifications
To serve as a judge in Nebraska, a candidate must be a U.S. citizen, be at least 30 years old, have practiced law in Nebraska for at least five years, and be currently licensed to practice before the state supreme court.[1]
Chief justice
The chief justice is appointed by the governor, who chooses his nomination from a list of candidates created by the judicial nominating commission. The chief justice is the executive head of the courts and may appoint a court administrator as the court's administrative director.[1]
State profile
| Demographic data for Nebraska | ||
|---|---|---|
| Nebraska | U.S. | |
| Total population: | 1,893,765 | 316,515,021 |
| Land area (sq mi): | 76,824 | 3,531,905 |
| Race and ethnicity** | ||
| White: | 88.1% | 73.6% |
| Black/African American: | 4.7% | 12.6% |
| Asian: | 2% | 5.1% |
| Native American: | 0.9% | 0.8% |
| Pacific Islander: | 0.1% | 0.2% |
| Two or more: | 2.2% | 3% |
| Hispanic/Latino: | 10% | 17.1% |
| Education | ||
| High school graduation rate: | 90.7% | 86.7% |
| College graduation rate: | 29.3% | 29.8% |
| Income | ||
| Median household income: | $52,997 | $53,889 |
| Persons below poverty level: | 14.6% | 11.3% |
| Source: U.S. Census Bureau, "American Community Survey" (5-year estimates 2010-2015) Click here for more information on the 2020 census and here for more on its impact on the redistricting process in Nebraska. **Note: Percentages for race and ethnicity may add up to more than 100 percent because respondents may report more than one race and the Hispanic/Latino ethnicity may be selected in conjunction with any race. Read more about race and ethnicity in the census here. | ||
Presidential voting pattern
- See also: Presidential voting trends in Nebraska
Nebraska voted Republican in all six presidential elections between 2000 and 2020.
Pivot Counties (2016)
Ballotpedia identified 206 counties that voted for Donald Trump (R) in 2016 after voting for Barack Obama (D) in 2008 and 2012. Collectively, Trump won these Pivot Counties by more than 580,000 votes. Of these 206 counties, one is located in Nebraska, accounting for 0.5 percent of the total pivot counties.[2]
Pivot Counties (2020)
In 2020, Ballotpedia re-examined the 206 Pivot Counties to view their voting patterns following that year's presidential election. Ballotpedia defined those won by Trump won as Retained Pivot Counties and those won by Joe Biden (D) as Boomerang Pivot Counties. Nationwide, there were 181 Retained Pivot Counties and 25 Boomerang Pivot Counties. Nebraska had one Retained Pivot County, 0.55 percent of all Retained Pivot Counties.
More Nebraska coverage on Ballotpedia
- Elections in Nebraska
- United States congressional delegations from Nebraska
- Public policy in Nebraska
- Endorsers in Nebraska
- Nebraska fact checks
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Recent news
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See also
External links
Footnotes
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 1.4 Nebraska Judicial System, "The Court System: Supreme Court," accessed January 2, 2015
- ↑ The raw data for this study was provided by Dave Leip of Atlas of U.S. Presidential Elections.
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Federal courts:
Eighth Circuit Court of Appeals • U.S. District Court: District of Nebraska • U.S. Bankruptcy Court: District of Nebraska
State courts:
Nebraska Supreme Court • Nebraska Court of Appeals • Nebraska District Courts • Nebraska County Courts • Nebraska Separate Juvenile Courts • Nebraska Workers' Compensation Court • Nebraska Problem-Solving Courts
State resources:
Courts in Nebraska • Nebraska judicial elections • Judicial selection in Nebraska
