Read the full article on Nebraska Examiner
LINCOLN — Backers of three petitions seeking to restructure Lincoln city elections submitted signatures this week to send their ideas to voters in the capital city this November.
Good Government Lincoln, a group led by former State Sen. Tony Fulton of Lincoln, announced Monday that it had turned in nearly twice as many signatures as needed on each measure. The proposed amendments to Lincoln’s city charter would move the dates of city elections, let certain residents outside city limits vote in municipal elections and place term limits on Lincoln City Council members.
“The support we saw at the doors and in our neighborhoods proves that people are ready for a city government that is more accountable, more accessible and more representative of the people it serves,” Fulton said in a Monday statement. “Submitting these signatures is a big step toward giving Lincoln voters the final say.”
Fulton, a Lincoln business owner and registered Republican, served as tax commissioner under former Gov. Pete Ricketts.
Lancaster County Election Commissioner Todd Wiltgen confirmed to the Nebraska Examiner last month that the campaign needs valid signatures from at least 5% of registered Lincoln voters during the state’s last gubernatorial race, in November 2022. That’s just shy of 5,000 signatures.
More than 9,750 signatures were submitted on each measure, according to the campaign.
The Lincoln City Clerk’s Office confirmed it had received the signatures and passed them along to the Lancaster County Election Commission for verification.
Should enough signatures be verified, the Lincoln City Council would need to act to place the measure on the November ballot. The deadline for a political subdivision to certify a special issue for inclusion on the Nov. 3 ballot is Sept. 1.
Petition specifics
The first petition would eliminate Lincoln’s practice of holding city elections every odd year and instead align Lincoln primary and general elections with statewide elections, beginning in 2028.
The city’s three at-large city council members, who were elected to four-year terms in 2025, would instead serve through 2030, almost five-year terms. Meanwhile, the mayor and four district-bound City Council members who will be elected to four-year terms next year, in 2027, would have their terms shortened to end in 2028, which would be a one-and-a-half-year term and would count as a full term for purposes of term limits.
The second petition would limit Lincoln City Council members to two consecutive, four-year terms. For purposes of the proposed city charter change, council terms beginning before 2027 would not count in calculating consecutive years of service.
The final petition would allow eligible voters living in Lincoln’s three-mile “extraterritorial zoning jurisdiction” to vote in city elections, excluding city bond elections. These residents are subject to certain city zoning ordinances and regulations, in part to help with future city growth, but they do not pay the same taxes to the city as those within city limits.
Currently, Lincoln voters must live within city limits for at least three months to vote in city elections.
Mayor in opposition
State Sen. Beau Ballard of Lincoln offered a similar legislative proposal this spring for all extraterritorial jurisdictions before narrowing it to just Lincoln and Omaha, and then just Lincoln. Ballard withdrew his proposal after facing stiff resistance in the final days of the session.
Opponents argued the measure was “representation without taxation” and could alter the political makeup of more-blue Lincoln by adding more rural voters.
Ballard and supporters contend that the current practice of letting Lincoln dictate development within its zoning jurisdiction is “taxation without representation” and counter that there are not enough voters in the three-mile radius to sway the election.
Lincoln Mayor Leirion Gaylor Baird, a Democrat in her second term who has led Nebraska’s capital city since 2019, opposes the measures. In a Tuesday post to her campaign Facebook page, she said they are coming from “extreme partisans who haven’t been able to win in local elections on their merits.”
“No other city in Nebraska is facing such an attack — just Lincoln,” she wrote. “Make no mistake, the partisan extremists behind this are not working for the common good, and they do not deserve your trust.”
Gaylor Baird has not announced whether she would seek reelection to what could be her third and final term next year, but she teased a run in her Tuesday post. She took aim at the petition seeking to move election days as “a scheme designed to shorten what would be my final term in office.”
Lincoln has been represented by a Democratic mayor since 1999 and now has a 6-1 Democratic majority city council, while much of the rest of the state has remained red.
Fourth petition in progress
A fourth Lincoln-focused petition, from the group Advocates for All Nebraskans, is also aiming for the November ballot. That campaign wants to set a floor of at least 450 full-time sworn police officers at all times, or about 80 more than Lincoln’s current police force. The measure could also mandate a higher police force proportionate to Lincoln’s population if it grows.
Gaylor Baird also opposes that plan. Her chief of staff last month said public safety is a “top priority” for Lincoln and that the city questions the legality and financial feasibility of the effort.
Backers of citizen-led city ordinances need signatures from 5% of the number of registered voters at Lincoln’s May 2025 election to send their ideas to the Lincoln City Council to approve or reject it, or send it to voters. As a backup, if at least 15% of voters sign, the measure can advance to the next election should the council fail or refuse to act. It’s about 9,300 signatures to go to the City Council and about 28,000 to ensure ballot access.
SUBSCRIBE: GET THE MORNING HEADLINES DELIVERED TO YOUR INBOX.
