Elections in 2022
Election Day in Nebraska is Nov. 8, 2022. In the general election, Nebraskans’ ballots will include, but will not be limited to:
All three seats for the U.S. Representatives;
Governor;
Secretary of State;
Attorney General;
A number of seats in the nonpartisan Nebraska Legislature; and
A number of ballot initiatives. View our Decoding The Ballot page for more information about these and other races.
On April 1, 2022, Gov. Pete Ricketts ordered a special election to fill the seat vacancy of Congressional District 1. The election was held on June 28, 2022. See results.
Registering to vote
There are two big deadlines for the Nov. 8, 2022, general election. The first is Oct. 21 by 11:59 pm CDT – that’s the online registration deadline for Nov. 8. The second is 6 pm CDT on Oct. 28, if you’re doing it in person. See our key election dates page for more information.
Go here to check — and then double-check. It takes 30 seconds.
When you register, you’ll receive a confirmation card in the U.S. Mail from your county’s election commissioner. This card has your personal information and the location of your polling place on it. If you receive this card and this information is not included on it, please contact your county’s election commission.
As a student, you are not required to re-register at your college address if you wish not to. Temporary leaves from your home city do not require a change in voter registration. That said, it’s up to you! If you wish to re-register to vote in the city where you go to college, that’s your right and you can certainly do so.
Voting by mail
Yes. If you wish to vote early by mail – and any registered voter in our state can do so for any reason – you must first fill out a request for that ballot.
Go to CivicNebraska.vote and we can help you obtain a request form.
›› You do not need to provide a reason to get a mail-in ballot. Nebraska is a “no excuse” state, meaning we place no unnecessary burdens on showing why you want to request an early ballot.
›› The first day that voters were allowed to submit early mail-in ballot requests was July 11. You can request a mail-in ballot until Oct. 28. We can help you with this process.
›› Election officials begin sending early mail-in ballots on Oct. 3 to those who have already requested them. Again, you have until Oct. 28 to request a mail-in ballot.
Only your first request will be processed. Anything else will be discarded. Our election systems have guardrails against sending out multiple ballots to the same person – you can’t, for example, send in three requests for a mail-in ballot, and then get three ballots. If you send in three requests for a mail-in ballot, only the first one counts. You will only get one ballot.
First, know that voting by mail is extremely secure. If you want to be absolutely sure that your ballot is received as quickly as possible, you can always take it to one of your county’s official dropboxes at any time before 8 p.m. on Election Day. You can track the status of your ballot here.
In-person voting
All Nebraska counties offer in-person early voting, usually starting a month before Election Day and going up to the Monday before the election. For the Nov. 8 primary, early voting will begin on Oct. 11.
See our Key Election Dates page for more information.
If you choose to vote in person in 2022, you can head to your polling station from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. CDT on Nov. 8. Find your polling place here.
Yes. Nebraska law allows workers time off to vote in certain circumstances. If you are scheduled to work the 12 hours when the polls are open, you can take up to two consecutive hours off to vote. If you apply for this time off before or even on Election Day, your employer can’t punish you or subtract wages on account of your absence. Under the law, your employer is also entitled to specify the hours when you can be gone from work to vote. Work in advance with your employer to ensure you are given time to get to the polls. It’s your right.
Yes, yes — by all means, yes! Stay in line. As long as you are in line by 8 p.m. CST (7 p.m. MST), you must be allowed to vote.
Electioneering
Here is how Nebraska law defines electioneering, which is a Class V misdemeanor (maximum fine: $100):
›› The deliberate, visible display or audible or physical dissemination of information for the purpose of advocating for or against:
(i) Any candidate on the ballot for the election at which such display or dissemination is occurring;
(ii) Any elected officeholder of a state constitutional office or federal office at the time of the election at which such display or dissemination is occurring;
(iii) Any political party on the ballot for the election at which such display or dissemination is occurring; or
(iv) Any measure on the ballot for the election at which such display or dissemination is occurring.
›› No judge or clerk of election or precinct or district inspector shall do any electioneering while acting as an election official.
›› No person shall do any electioneering or circulate petitions within any polling place or any building designated for voters to cast ballots by the election commissioner or county clerk pursuant to the Election Act while the polling place or building is set up for voters to cast ballots or within two hundred feet of any such polling place or building.
›› No person shall do any electioneering within two hundred feet of any secure ballot dropbox.
The only exception is if campaign/candidate paraphernalia is on someone’s private property, and that private property is less than 200 feet from a polling place.
Claims of electioneering are common on Election Day. Before notifying law enforcement, please review the statute to be sure what you are seeing is, by the letter of the law, actually electioneering. The general rule of thumb – petitions, campaign signs, and other campaign paraphernalia should be at least 200 feet from a polling place.
A free, democratic society requires each voter to have the right to cast his or her ballot free from intimidation or coercion. Voter intimidation is illegal. Federal law specifically prohibits:
›› Intimidation, threats, or coercion – or attempted intimidation, threats, or coercion – of others, “for the purpose of interfering with” someone’s right to vote, or to vote as they may choose.
›› Willfully injuring, intimidating, or interfering with any person because they are voting or have voted, or to intimidate anyone to not vote.
Also, Section 2 of the 1871 Ku Klux Klan Act makes it a federal crime for two or more people to “conspire to prevent by force, intimidation, or threat” any voter from casting a ballot for the candidate of their choice.
Nebraska, like all U.S. states, has separate prohibitions on interfering with or intimidating voters.
Ballot access
This is serious business, and we should know about it right away. If you have been denied a ballot for any reason, we encourage you to contact Civic Nebraska’s Election Protection Line at 402.890.5291, via email at info@civicnebraska.org; or via Facebook or Twitter.
No. Identification is not required to vote in Nebraska. The only exception is if you’re a first-time voter, you registered to vote by mail, and did not send in a copy of your ID at that time. If you are asked to present ID at your polling place for any other reason, call Civic Nebraska’s Election Protection Line at 402.890.5291, email us at info@civicnebraska.org, or hit us up on Facebook or Twitter.
As the pre-eminent election protection organization in our state, Civic Nebraska is training dozens of nonpartisan election observers for the Nov. 8 general election. Go here to sign up, or contact our Voting Rights Initiatives team for more information.
What elections occur in 2022?
Nebraska held its 2022 primary election on May 10. The general election is Nov. 8. In the general election, Nebraskans’ ballots will include, but will not be limited to:
-
All three seats for the U.S. Representatives;
-
Governor;
-
Secretary of State;
-
Attorney General;
-
A number of seats in the nonpartisan Nebraska Legislature; and
-
A number of ballot initiatives. View our Decoding The Ballot page for more information about these and other races.
Registering to vote
›› I’m an eligible Nebraska voter but am not registered. By what date(s) do I have to register, to vote in the Nov. 8 statewide election?
There are two big deadlines for the Nov. 8, 2022, general election. The first is Oct. 21 by 11:59 pm CDT – that’s the online registration deadline for Nov. 8. The second is 6 pm CDT on Oct. 28, if you’re doing it in person. See our Key Election Dates page for more information.
Don’t wait to get registered. You can do it online anytime right here.
›› I can’t remember if I’m registered to vote. Where can I check?
Go here to check — and then double-check. It takes 30 seconds.
When you register, you’ll receive a confirmation card in the U.S. Mail from your county’s election commissioner. This card has your personal information and the location of your polling place on it. If you receive this card and this information is not included on it, please contact your county’s election commission.
›› I’m a college student and live in a different city than where I’m registered to vote. Am I required to vote in the city I go to school in, or the city where I am originally from?
As a student, you are not required to re-register at your college address if you wish not to. Temporary leaves from your home city do not require a change in voter registration. That said, it’s up to you! If you wish to re-register to vote in the city where you go to college, that’s your right and you can certainly do so.
Voting by mail / early mail-in ballot
›› I voted by mail in the May primary election. Do I have to request another early mail-in ballot for the November general election?
Yes. If you wish to vote early by mail – and any registered voter in our state can do so for any reason – you must first fill out a request for that ballot. Go to CivicNebraska.vote and we can help you obtain a request form.
›› How soon can I request my early mail-in ballot for the general election?
The first day that voters are allowed to submit early mail-in ballot requests to vote by mail in the Nov. 8 general election is July 11, 2022. We can help you with this process.
›› When will the early 2022 mail-in ballots be sent out?
Election officials will begin sending early mail-in ballots on Oct. 3 to those who request them.
›› What will happen if I submit more than one request form to vote by mail?
Only your first request will be processed. Anything else will be discarded. Our election systems have guardrails against sending out multiple ballots to the same person – you can’t, for example, send in three requests for a mail-in ballot, and then get three ballots. If you send in three requests for a mail-in ballot, only the first one counts. You will only get one ballot.
›› What’s the difference between an “absentee ballot” and an “early mail-in ballot?”
Nothing. You may be hearing several different terms – absentee voting, early mail-in voting, vote-by-mail, vote-at-home, etc. This time-honored practice goes by many names, but it is all the same thing. And it’s proven, reliable, and secure.
›› Do I need to give election officials a reason to get an early mail-in ballot?
No. Nebraska is a “no excuse” state, meaning we place no unnecessary burdens on showing why you want to request an early ballot.
›› I’m worried that my ballot will not get to election officials, or not get to them in time. What can I do to make sure it gets counted?
First, know that voting by mail is extremely secure. If you want to be absolutely sure that your ballot is received as quickly as possible, you can always take it to one of your county’s official dropboxes at any time before 8 p.m. on Election Day. You can track the status of your ballot here.
In-person voting
›› I want to vote early but I’d like to do it in person. Can I do that?
Absolutely. All Nebraska counties offer in-person early voting, usually starting a month before Election Day and going up to the Monday before the election. For the Nov. 8 primary, early voting will begin on Oct. 11. See our Key Election Dates page for more information.
›› Where do I go on Election Day to vote?
If you choose to vote in person in 2022, you can head to your polling station from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. CDT on Nov. 8.
›› I can’t remember where my polling place is. Is there a way to double-check beforehand?
Yes. Click here. Enter your address and your polling place will be displayed.
›› I have to work all day on Election Day. Is there any way I can get time off to vote?
Yes. Nebraska law allows workers time off to vote in certain circumstances. If you are scheduled to work the 12 hours when the polls are open, you can take up to two consecutive hours off to vote. If you apply for this time off before or even on Election Day, your employer can’t punish you or subtract wages on account of your absence. Under the law, your employer is also entitled to specify the hours when you can be gone from work to vote. Work in advance with your employer to ensure you are given time to get to the polls. It’s your right.
›› If I’m in line when the polls close but I have yet to vote, do I still get to vote?
Yes, yes — by all means, yes! Stay in line. As long as you are in line by 8 p.m. Central, you must be allowed to vote.
›› I want to be an election observer on Election Day. How do I do that?
As the pre-eminent election protection organization in our state, Civic Nebraska is training dozens of nonpartisan election observers for the Nov. 8 general election. Go here to sign up, or contact our Voting Rights Initiatives team for more information.
Electioneering
›› What is electioneering?
Here is how Nebraska law defines electioneering, which is a Class V misdemeanor (maximum fine: $100). Claims of electioneering are common on Election Day. Before notifying law enforcement, please review the statute to be sure what you are seeing is, by the letter of the law, actually electioneering. The general rule of thumb – petitions, campaign signs, and other campaign paraphernalia should be at least 200 feet from a polling place. The only exception is if the paraphernalia is on someone’s private property that is less than 200 feet from a polling place.
Ballot access
›› What do I do if I’m denied a ballot on Election Day?
This is serious business, and we should know about it right away. If you have been denied a ballot for any reason, we encourage you to contact Civic Nebraska’s Election Protection Line at 402.890.5291, via email at info@civicnebraska.org; or via Facebook or Twitter.
›› Do I have to show an ID on Election Day to vote?
No. Identification is not required to vote in Nebraska. The only exception is if you’re a first-time voter, you registered to vote by mail, and did not send in a copy of your ID at that time. If you are asked to present ID at your polling place for any other reason, call Civic Nebraska’s Election Protection Line at 402.890.5291, email us at info@civicnebraska.org, or hit us up on Facebook or Twitter.
›› Other questions? Let us know at info@civicnebraska.org and we’ll add them (and our answers) here.
