Ernie Chambers
Ernie Chambers (independent) was a member of the Nebraska State Senate, representing District 11. He assumed office on January 9, 2013. He left office on January 6, 2021.
Chambers ran for election to the Nebraska State Senate to represent District 11. He did not appear on the ballot for the general election on November 5, 2024.
Committee assignments
2019-2020
Chambers was assigned to the following committees:
2017 legislative session
At the beginning of the 2017 legislative session, this legislator served on the following committees:
| Nebraska committee assignments, 2017 |
|---|
| • Agriculture |
| • Business and Labor |
| • Judiciary |
2015 legislative session
At the beginning of the 2015 legislative session, Chambers served on the following committees:
| Nebraska committee assignments, 2015 |
|---|
| • Agriculture |
| • Business and Labor |
| • Judiciary |
2013-2014
In the 2013-2014 legislative session, Chambers served on the following committees:
| Nebraska committee assignments, 2013 |
|---|
| • Agriculture |
| • Business and Labor |
| • Judiciary |
Issues
Arena board records
In January 2014, Chambers stated he would either support legislation or is inclined to vote for legislation to open the records of the Metropolitan and Convention Authority (MECA), an Omaha arena board that runs several convention centers, including a ballpark and civil auditorium. For a decade, MECA has not had to comply with Nebraska public records law. Chambers is one of 11 Omaha-area legislators who supports such legislation.[1]
Death penalty bills
In January 2013, Chambers, a staunch opponent of the death penalty, introduced Legislative Bill 542, which would strike from the law one of nine aggravating circumstances used to determine whether a convicted murderer is to be executed. He told the Judiciary Committee the following month that the circumstance that "[t]he murder was especially heinous, atrocious, cruel, or manifested exceptional depravity by ordinary standards of morality and intelligence" was vague and therefore unconstitutional on both the state and federal levels. Speaking for the Nebraska County Attorneys Association, attorney Joe Kelly countered that jurors are given instructions on how to determine heinousness.[2]
Chambers also introduced Legislative Bill 543 in January, calling for the outright abolishment of the death penalty in the state. This revived a tradition from his previous tenure in the Legislature in which he would submit a similar bill each year. The bill received a Judiciary Committee hearing on March 14, 2013.[3]
Sponsored legislation
The following table lists bills this person sponsored as a legislator, according to BillTrack50 and sorted by action history. Bills are sorted by the date of their last action. The following list may not be comprehensive. To see all bills this legislator sponsored, click on the legislator's name in the title of the table.
Elections
2024
See also: Nebraska State Senate elections, 2024
General election
General election for Nebraska State Senate District 11
Incumbent Terrell McKinney won election in the general election for Nebraska State Senate District 11 on November 5, 2024.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ | Terrell McKinney (Nonpartisan) | 96.0 | 9,025 | |
| Other/Write-in votes | 4.0 | 373 | ||
| Total votes: 9,398 | ||||
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Withdrawn or disqualified candidates
- Ernie Chambers (Nonpartisan)
Nonpartisan primary election
Nonpartisan primary for Nebraska State Senate District 11
Incumbent Terrell McKinney and Ernie Chambers defeated Calandra Cooper in the primary for Nebraska State Senate District 11 on May 14, 2024.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ | Terrell McKinney (Nonpartisan) | 44.6 | 1,351 | |
| ✔ | Ernie Chambers (Nonpartisan) | 44.5 | 1,347 | |
| Calandra Cooper (Nonpartisan) | 10.8 | 328 | ||
| Total votes: 3,026 | ||||
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Endorsements
Ballotpedia did not identify endorsements for Chambers in this election.
2020
Douglas County Commission
See also: Municipal elections in Douglas County, Nebraska (2020)
General election
General election for Douglas County Board of Commissioners District 3
Incumbent Chris Rodgers defeated Ernie Chambers in the general election for Douglas County Board of Commissioners District 3 on November 3, 2020.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ | Chris Rodgers (D) | 86.7 | 18,904 | |
| Ernie Chambers (Independent) (Write-in) | 10.8 | 2,348 | ||
| Other/Write-in votes | 2.5 | 544 | ||
| Total votes: 21,796 | ||||
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Democratic primary election
Democratic primary for Douglas County Board of Commissioners District 3
Incumbent Chris Rodgers defeated Asit Goswami in the Democratic primary for Douglas County Board of Commissioners District 3 on May 12, 2020.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ | Chris Rodgers | 68.7 | 5,443 | |
| Asit Goswami | 30.8 | 2,440 | ||
| Other/Write-in votes | 0.5 | 37 | ||
| Total votes: 7,920 | ||||
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Nebraska State Senate
- See also: Nebraska State Senate elections, 2020
Ernie Chambers was not able to file for re-election due to term limits.[4]
2016
- See also: Nebraska State Senate elections, 2016
Elections for the Nebraska State Senate were held in 2016. The primary election took place on May 10, 2016. The general election was held on November 8, 2016. The candidate filing deadline was February 16, 2016, for incumbents. Challengers were required to file by March 1, 2016.[5]
Incumbent Ernie Chambers defeated John Sciara in the Nebraska State Senate District 11 general election.[6][7]
| Nebraska State Senate, District 11 General Election, 2016 | ||
|---|---|---|
| Candidate | Vote % | Votes |
 Ernie Chambers Incumbent |
81.81% | 7,763 |
| John Sciara | 18.19% | 1,726 |
| Total Votes | 9,489 | |
| Source: Nebraska Secretary of State | ||
Incumbent Ernie Chambers and John Sciara defeated Fonte Hamilton in the Nebraska State Senate District 11 primary.[8][9]
| Nebraska State Senate, District 11 Primary, 2016 | ||
|---|---|---|
| Candidate | Vote % | Votes |
| Ernie Chambers Incumbent |
73.25% | 1,254 |
| John Sciara |
17.82% | 305 |
| Fonte Hamilton | 8.94% | 153 |
| Total Votes | 1,712 | |
2012
- See also: Nebraska State Senate elections, 2012
Chambers won election in the 2012 election for Nebraska State Senate District 11. Chamber ran unopposed in the May 15 primary election and defeated incumbent Brenda Council in the general election, which took place on November 6, 2012.[10][11]
| Party | Candidate | Vote % | Votes | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Nonpartisan | Ernie Chambers |
66.9% | 6,734 | |
| Nonpartisan | Brenda Council Incumbent | 33.1% | 3,326 | |
| Total Votes | 10,060 | |||
Campaign themes
2024
Ballotpedia survey responses
See also: Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection
Ernie Chambers did not complete Ballotpedia's 2024 Candidate Connection survey.
2020
Ernie Chambers did not complete Ballotpedia's 2020 Candidate Connection survey.
Campaign finance summary
Note: The finance data shown here comes from the disclosures required of candidates and parties. Depending on the election or state, this may represent only a portion of all the funds spent on their behalf. Satellite spending groups may or may not have expended funds related to the candidate or politician on whose page you are reading this disclaimer. Campaign finance data from elections may be incomplete. For elections to federal offices, complete data can be found at the FEC website. Click here for more on federal campaign finance law and here for more on state campaign finance law.
Scorecards
A scorecard evaluates a legislator’s voting record. Its purpose is to inform voters about the legislator’s political positions. Because scorecards have varying purposes and methodologies, each report should be considered on its own merits. For example, an advocacy group’s scorecard may assess a legislator’s voting record on one issue while a state newspaper’s scorecard may evaluate the voting record in its entirety.
Ballotpedia is in the process of developing an encyclopedic list of published scorecards. Some states have a limited number of available scorecards or scorecards produced only by select groups. It is Ballotpedia’s goal to incorporate all available scorecards regardless of ideology or number.
Click here for an overview of legislative scorecards in all 50 states. To contribute to the list of Nebraska scorecards, email suggestions to editor@ballotpedia.org.
2020
In 2020, the Nebraska State Legislature was in session from January 8 to August 13.
- Legislators are scored on children's issues.
- Legislators are scored on their votes on conservative issues.
2019
| To view all the scorecards we found for this legislator in 2019, click [show]. |
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In 2019, the Nebraska Unicameral Legislature was in its 107th Legislature, 1st session from January 9 through May 31.
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2018
| To view all the scorecards we found for this legislator in 2018, click [show]. |
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In 2018, the Nebraska Unicameral Legislature was in its 106th Legislature, 2nd session from January 3 to April 18.
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2017
| To view all the scorecards we found for this legislator in 2017, click [show]. |
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In 2017, the Nebraska Unicameral Legislature was in its 105th Legislature, 1st session from January 4 to May 23.
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2016
| To view all the scorecards we found for this legislator in 2016, click [show]. |
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In 2016, the Nebraska Unicameral Legislature was in its 104th Legislature, 2nd session from January 6 to April 20.
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2015
| To view all the scorecards we found for this legislator in 2015, click [show]. |
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In 2015, the Nebraska Unicameral Legislature was in its 104th Legislature, 1st session from January 7 to May 29.
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2014
| To view all the scorecards we found for this legislator in 2014, click [show]. |
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In 2014, the Nebraska Unicameral Legislature was in its 103rd Legislature, 2nd session from January 8 to April 17.[12]
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2013
| To view all the scorecards we found for this legislator in 2013, click [show]. |
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In 2013, the Nebraska Unicameral Legislature was in its 103rd Legislature, 1st session from January 9 to June 5.
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Noteworthy events
Federal complaint against Council
In October 2012, Chambers filed a federal complaint against then-Senator Brenda Council, alleging that she violated federal law in using campaign funds for gambling, as well as in filing false campaign reports. Council had already pleaded guilty to two related state misdemeanor charges; she was fined $500 with court costs. Chambers called Council "an embarrassment to the community," and said, "I can say truthfully I am not a crook." Council responded by saying the matter had been settled, and that discussion of issues in the senate race between them was being neglected.[13]
See also
2024 Elections
External links
Footnotes
- ↑ WatchDog.org, "Exclusive: Some lawmakers ready to open MECA’s secret records," accessed February 19, 2014
- ↑ Lincoln Journal Star, "Chambers wants to change Nebraska's death penalty law," accessed February 25, 2013
- ↑ Nebraska News Service, "Bill would abolish death penalty in Nebraska," accessed March 14, 2013
- ↑ Omaha World-Herald, "Community activist seeks to succeed Ernie Chambers in Nebraska Legislature," October 1, 2019
- ↑ Nebraska Secretary of State, "Official Election Calendar," accessed December 7, 2015
- ↑ Nebraska Secretary of State, "Statewide Candidate List for general election," accessed August 19, 2016
- ↑ Nebraska Secetary of State, "General election results, 2016," accessed December 21, 2016
- ↑ Nebraska Secretary of State, "Statewide Candidate List," accessed May 16, 2016
- ↑ Nebraska Secretary of State, "Primary Election May 10, 2016," accessed October 14, 2016
- ↑ Nebraska Secretary of State, "Statewide Candidate List," accessed February 14, 2014
- ↑ Nebraska Secretary of State, "Official Report of The Board of State Canvassers of the State of Nebraska - Primary Election, May 15, 2012," accessed May 13, 2014
- ↑ Nebraska Legislature, "2014 Legislative Session," accessed June 27, 2014
- ↑ Associated Press, "Council fires back at Chambers in state senate race," accessed October 17, 2012
| Political offices | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by - |
Nebraska State Senate District 11 2013-2021 |
Succeeded by Terrell McKinney (D) |
| Preceded by - |
Nebraska State Senate District 11 1971-2009 |
Succeeded by - |
