5.23.2016

Here are some updated statistics with accompanying charts that demonstrate the sad state that the NDP currently finds itself. Over the past 36 years, the NDP has gone from having a membership of near parity with the NEGOP to amounting to less than 1/3rd of all registered voters in the state.

All annual data is derived from the Nebraska Secretary of State Canvas books for general election results except that for 2016 comes from data collected just prior to the recent primary election. What becomes obvious is that the NEGOP has shown a small amount of growth, but the NDP continues its slide to the bottom. Nonpartisan voters will soon outnumber Democrats in this state if something drastic doesn't turn things around.

I believe that the inclusion of the many Bernie Sanders supporters that were, until very recently, registered as Independents may swell the NDP's ranks. However, if the party treats these newcomers with the kind of mindless disrespect that appears to be happening in some places, they will go away and the NDP will continue to rot.

The future belongs to the younger people. They are the ones that will live in the world we create today. Let us old timers step aside and welcome these kids that have a fire in their bellies and a willingness to step up and do the hard work it takes to become a successful party. Too many of today's NDP members have become too soft, with their sense of entitlement to the positions they have held for far too long. It is time to get out of the way and watch the Revolution begin!

Registered Voters by Party Affiliation in Nebraska 
Year Republican Democrat Nonpartisan Other Parties Total R % D % Nonpartisan %
1980
424,963
376,534
54,471
214
856,182
49.63%
43.98%
6.39%
1982
416,938
362,188
52,995
0
832,121
50.11%
43.53%
6.37%
1984
454,546
386,465
61,524
91
902,626
50.36%
42.82%
6.83%
1986
435,289
359,281
55,192
0
849,762
51.22%
42.28%
6.49%
1988
435,472
378,360
65,019
138
878,989
49.54%
43.04%
7.41%
1990
449,335
374,023
67,221
0
890,579
50.45%
42.00%
7.55%
1992
464,955
389,102
97,144
194
951,395
48.87%
40.90%
10.23%
1994
456,399
365,872
97,050
0
919,321
49.65%
39.80%
10.56%
1996
502,038
384,887
127,894
239
1,015,058
49.46%
37.92%
12.62%
1998
521,137
390,776
144,183
255
1,056,351
49.33%
36.99%
13.67%
2000
537,605
392,344
153,088
2,180
1,085,217
49.54%
36.15%
14.31%
2002
543,935
381,991
152,874
4,744
1,083,544
50.20%
35.25%
14.55%
2004
544,979
378,157
157,021
7,685
1,087,842
50.10%
34.76%
15.14%
2006
573,016
370,724
187,060
7,622
1,138,422
50.33%
32.56%
17.10%
2008
558,308
393,468
195,459
10,110
1,157,345
48.24%
34.00%
17.76%
2010
549,011
380,252
212,461
333
1,142,057
48.07%
33.30%
18.63%
2012
558,145
374,075
228,361
3,290
1,163,871
47.96%
32.14%
19.90%
2014
559,364
357,835
235,922
5,719
1,158,840
48.27%
30.88%
20.85%
2016
564,721
359,829
233,410
7,411
1,165,371
48.46%
30.88%
20.66%




5.22.2016

A Blast from the Past

While digging through some of my old archives, looking for some data to update the charts in another post down below, I came across this letter that was included in the packets distributed to all of the delegates to the 2014 NDP State Convention. At least, it was supposed to have been. It was my bid to become the State Chair of the NDP.

I am amazed how everything I wrote about then hold true today. The difference being, with the advent of an army of Bernie Sanders delegates, the things I wanted to change are now, possibly within grasp.

While I no longer am seeking the post, I hope that someone, with all the right credentials, may arise from the Sander's camp to take the reins of the NDP in hand and guide it to a brighter future. Anyway, I hope you all might enjoy reading this, unless, of course, you are one of those that are part of the problem, and not the solution.

Fellow delegates to the 2014 NDP State Convention,

Our Constitution says that we are the “supreme governing body of the Nebraska Democratic Party.” We are the only representatives to our party that are elected according to the statutes of the State of Nebraska. And yet - unless you are elected here as one of our party’s officers, as a delegate to the State Central Committee, or are chosen to represent one of the various affiliated organizations privileged to occupy a seat on the State Executive Committee - once you leave here this weekend, your work is done and your “authority” is nullified by the aforementioned.

This is the fourth State Convention that I will have attended as a delegate. I have also served as the Chair of my county, as a State Central Committee Delegate, as the Associate Chair of the 3rd CD, and have served on numerous committees over the years. I was instrumental in the formation of the 3rd CD Organization, and have served in a variety of roles within it. I have, until recently, taken an extended hiatus from party politics. I will admit that, for some persons of authority within the NDP, I was a particularly uncomfortable presence. I believe strongly in holding the feet of those in charge to the fire. I do not tolerate those that abuse their roles to satisfy personal agendas over that of the people that elected them as representatives.

I have been particularly upset with the numerous times I have seen the State Convention and the State Central Committee pass resolutions or bylaws that were immediately relegated to the trash bin as they were uncomfortable for those behind the curtains. Actions demanded by the State Central Committee were often totally ignored by the State Chair and the Executive Committee - those whom our Constitution says are subordinate to them. I have witnessed out and out violations of our Constitution and Bylaws. Our resolutions and our party platform are universally ignored despite the Constitution’s demand that they be promoted. It is time for such things to end.

As your State Chair I would hope to return the NDP to its glory days such as in the early ‘90s when Democrats counted two Senators, one Congressman, a Governor and Lt. Governor, a State Treasurer and a State Auditor. Since 1980 we have seen a consistent decline in the percentage of Nebraska voters registered as Democrats. Back then we were nearly nose and nose with the Republicans, holding 48.85% of all registrants. After the recent primaries, our numbers have declined to an all time low of 31.15%. Most recently we have been able to count ZERO federal or statewide offices held by Democrats and we have lost the office of mayor in Omaha. This is not the kind of “continuity” I envision as being healthy for our  party.

I would love to tell you that by electing me as your State Chair everything would immediately turn around and our party would enjoy unheard of successes. I would be a fool to promise that. What I will promise you is that, as your State Chair, I would recognize my role as the least important Democrat in the state, because I would be subservient to you all. For me, the most important Democrat in this state isn’t the highest office holder, it is the common registered Democratic voter. All of us that are here for this State Convention, each of you that will serve on the State Central Committee, and every member of the State Executive Committee or the various other committees would be reminded by me that you are here to serve your fellow Democrats, not to take advantage of them, or to lord your “power” over them. I would demand hard work from each and every one of you, and I would hold people responsible for their duties as they are described in our Constitution and Bylaws, not merely according to my whim.

We have an awful lot of work to do. That work is rebuilding the Nebraska Democratic Party from the ignoble state that it is in today. What needs to be done is mostly on the local level. I see the NDP office as a place that should provide help wherever it is needed, not merely a site for fundraising and event planning. We can hold all of the self-congratulatory dinners we want to, but they don’t elect Democrats to office. We can hold fund-raiser after fund-raiser, inviting those who are already in our fold, but we will not grow our party by rubbing elbows with each other - there are too few of us!

Those counties and organizations that are already well organized don’t need interference from the state office. Our resources are needed to help grow in areas where there has been too little activity by our leadership. The requirements of the vast rural areas of our state are far different than those in Lincoln and Omaha. We need to develop strategies that will enhance our presence in those areas dominated by the GOP today.

What I propose is a revolution. It will be uncomfortable for some folks that are entrenched in their cushy roles in the party, as it should be. The alternative is more of the same “continuity” which will result in 3rd party and Independent voters outnumbering Democrats in this state by 2020. I’m not so much into golf tournaments and fancy dinners as I am getting down into the trenches and fighting for what we, Nebraska’s Democrats, stand for. Elect me and I won’t lead from the rear.

Are you up to it?


Brian T. Osborn