ELECTORAL VOTES 5

2008 ELECTION Safe McCain

ABOUT
NEBRASKA

Nebraska entered the Union in March 1867, 13 years after it became a territory under the Kansas-Nebraska Act, and the first state admitted after the end of the Civil War. The state is strongly Republican in presidential elections – it last voted Democratic in 1964. In 2004, George Bush defeated John Kerry by a two-to-one vote margin. Nebraska’s primarily rural population has not grown as quickly as other parts of the country, leading to declining electoral influence – from a peak of eight electoral votes before the Great Depression to its current total of five. Nebraska and Maine are the only two states to not use the all-or-nothing approach to awarding electoral votes. The winner of the popular vote gets two electoral votes, while one is assigned to the winner of each of the state’s three congressional districts. This approach was established beginning with the 1992 election, although it has never yet resulted in a split electoral vote.