The Plan · Deep dive
The law sets the floor.Leadership sets the standard.
What Nebraska’s Secretary of State can do, starting on day one.
Nebraska law is clear. The Secretary of State is the chief election officer, responsible for supervising elections, enforcing the law, training county officials and ensuring transparency across all 93 counties.
Statutes set the calendar, and some changes require the Legislature. But significant authority is already in place to strengthen election integrity without passing a single new law.
The work is using the authority that already exists.
No new laws required
What can be done now.
End mass mail ballot requests
No Nebraska law requires statewide mass mailing of ballot request forms. That was a policy decision, not a mandate.
- End taxpayer-funded mass mailings
- Return to request-only absentee voting
- Reinforce elections as a deliberate, secure process
Secure mail and early voting
Mail voting is part of Nebraska law, but how it is administered is largely within the Secretary of State’s control.
- Higher signature-verification standards
- Consistent ID-related procedures
- Training for county election officials
- Audit and compliance oversight
Enforce chain of custody
Every ballot should be tracked and accounted for from request to final count.
- Issue rules and guidance
- Inspect county election practices
- Oversee election systems and vendors
- Strengthen handling, transfer, storage and access controls
Standards for drop boxes
Drop boxes are not required across Nebraska. This is about security and accountability wherever ballots are handled.
- Uniform statewide standards
- Stronger security requirements
- Chain-of-custody procedures
- Guidance on placement and use
Clean, accurate voter rolls
Maintaining voter rolls is a core responsibility of the office.
- Proactive list maintenance
- Use of state, federal and interstate data
- Removing outdated or ineligible registrations
- Transparency to the public
Security and vendor oversight
Nebraskans shouldn’t be asked to simply trust the system. They deserve to verify it.
- Independent security assessments
- Stronger accountability for election vendors
- Clear enforcement of standards
Execution
What real leadership looks like.
Full chain-of-custody transparency
- Statewide tracking for every ballot
- Digital logs with timestamps, seals and handlers
- Public visibility into the process
Security you can see
- Surveillance at drop boxes and ballot processing locations
- Retention and availability of footage
- Clear documentation of ballot handling
Training and accountability in all 93 counties
- Standardized statewide procedures
- Required certification for election officials
- Consistent enforcement of election laws
Real audits
- Audits scaled to the closeness of the race, not fixed percentages
- Full hand counts of entire races in selected contests
- Transparent, publicly verifiable random selection
- Independent bipartisan observers at every stage
- Complete methods, data and results published for review
Public transparency dashboards
- Regular reporting on voter-roll maintenance
- Ballot verification and processing data
- Clear, accessible public updates
No more “trust us.” You’ll be able to see it for yourself.
The bottom line
Use the authority in place. Enforce the law as written. Deliver real transparency and accountability.