Nebraska Secretary of State Bob Evnen sued for refusing to follow voting rights law

Three convicted felons have sued Nebraska Republican Secretary of State Bob Evnen after he ordered election officials to not follow a new law allowing some felons to vote.

The filing with the state’s Supreme Court was prompted after Evnen ordered local election officials across the state to not register felons under the new state law.

The American Civil Liberties Union, ACLU of Nebraska and the law firm Faegre Drinker brought the challenge Monday on behalf of the advocacy group Civic Nebraska and three plaintiffs: John Thomas Jeffrey King, Gregory Spung and Jeremy Jonak.

“Secretary Evnen’s actions, taken less than four months before a presidential election, have dramatically upended two decades of settled election law and created chaos, confusion and uncertainty in Nebraska’s electoral process,” the lawsuit says. “Thousands of Nebraskans whose right to vote has been restored by the Legislature have been swiftly and unilaterally disenfranchised by the secretary of state.” 

An estimated 7,000 felons became eligible to register to vote July 19 under a law passed in April by the Nebraska Legislature that eliminated a two-year waiting period for felons to register to vote.

But a nonbinding legal opinion issued by Republican Attorney General Mike Hilgers on July 17 said the law was unconstitutional because it amounted to a commutation that can only be granted by the Nebraska Board of Pardons — made up of Hilgers, Evnen and fellow Republican Gov. Jim Pillen.

Soon after, Evnen ordered officials in all 93 counties to stop registering people under the new law.

“To me, this is about being fully part of society now that I have made up for a past mistake,” Spung said in a statement through the ACLU. “There is an important election ahead of us, and I was excited that I could be part of it. All we are asking is for officials to follow the law and let us vote.”

King said: “We have paid our debt in full, and we should be fully included in our democracy. Being a productive member of society comes with many responsibilities, including jobs, bills and taxes. Those are essential, and so is having a say in who represents us and how tax dollars are spent.”

Nebraska is one of 15 states to immediately grant voting eligibility to felons who have served their sentence, including probation or parole, according to the National Conference of State Legislatures.

Evnen’s office declined immediate request for comment on the lawsuit from the Nebraska Independent.