Nebraska Election Transparency: What Is Secretary Evnen Hiding?
- 6 days ago
- 3 min read
Friends,
Something just happened in Pennsylvania that should get every Nebraskan’s attention.
After a five-year legal battle, the Pennsylvania Supreme Court ruled that Cast Vote Records (CVRs) must be made public.
Why does that matter?
Because CVRs are the machine-generated records of how every ballot was counted—not the ballots themselves, but the digital audit trail created by the tabulators.
And the court made something very clear:
CVRs are not ballots
CVRs do not reveal voter identity
CVRs are public records
Transparency does not violate ballot secrecy
In fact, the court emphasized that releasing this data is essential to “satisfy the voting public that our elections are safe, secure, and accurate.”
So here’s the question…
If this data is public in Pennsylvania… why isn’t it in Nebraska?
But Here’s What Nebraska Officials Have Said
In a Lancaster County Board meeting, when asked directly about CVRs, a state election official responded:
The system has the capability to generate them
But they are “not something that we utilize”
And therefore, they are treated as not a record at all
Think about that.
The machines create the data…
…but if no one runs the report, it’s treated as if it doesn't exist. Listen for yourself...
What the Machines Actually Do
Modern tabulators like the ES&S systems used across Nebraska don’t just count ballots.
They convert every voter’s selections into electronic records—Cast Vote Records.
That’s their job.
And those records:
Show how each ballot was interpreted
Provide a complete digital audit trail
Allow verification that machines counted correctly
Simply put, CVRs are the machine’s “digital memory” of the vote and they contain no personal voter information.
This Isn’t Just Theory. It’s Federal Design.
Federal guidance confirms that this data is meant to be used and reviewed. According to the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST), election system data and reporting are intended not just for officials, but for:
👉 Election administrators 👉 System designers
👉 And the general public
That matters. Because it means these records were never meant to be hidden. They were meant to be reviewed.
📄 Read the federal standard: https://nvlpubs.nist.gov/nistpubs/SpecialPublications/NIST.SP.1500-103.pdf
Why Cast Vote Records Matter
CVRs are:
✔ Anonymous
✔ Non-identifying
✔ A complete digital record of how ballots were counted
They allow for:
✔ Independent verification
✔ Side-by-side comparison with paper ballots
✔ Real transparency, not just assurances
Without them, there is no meaningful way for the public to confirm the accuracy of machine tabulation.
Without access to CVRs:
You cannot independently verify how machines counted ballots
You cannot match digital results to physical ballots
You cannot conduct full, transparent audits
Even supporters of current systems acknowledge that logs, reports, and CVRs are essential to verification.
So the question becomes:
Why would you not use them?
What the Pennsylvania Supreme Court Ruling Changes
This ruling draws a clear line:
Ballots are private. Data about ballots is public.
That distinction matters. Because it directly challenges the argument that releasing CVRs would violate voter secrecy.
The court found the opposite:
CVRs are randomized
CVRs are anonymous
CVRs are safe to release
Transparency strengthens trust
The Bigger Question
This isn’t about politics. It’s about confidence. It’s about whether the public can verify the system or is simply told to trust it.
Because when:
The data exists
The machines create it
Other states release it
And courts say it should be public
…then withholding it raises a simple, unavoidable question:
Why?
Transparency should never be controversial. And in elections, it should never be optional. Because in a system that belongs to the people…
the data belongs to the people too.
For Nebraska,
Scott Petersen
Candidate for Nebraska Secretary of State
🗳️ Vote May 12
P.S. If you believe in true transparency, please forward this to 5 friends or family members, get them to vote, and call your county clerk to retain the Cast Vote Records on May 12!
Want to Understand Why All This Matters?
If you want to go deeper into how CVRs are analyzed and why transparency is critical, this documentary walks through real-world data and examples:
Comments