The secretary of state of Nebraska is one of the constitutional officers of the U.S. state of Nebraska. In Nebraska, the secretary of state is elected for a four-year term. Vacancies are filled by appointment by the governor of Nebraska.
| Secretary of State of Nebraska | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Type | Secretary of State |
| Term length | 4 years |
| Formation | 1854 |
| First holder | Thomas B. Cuming |
| Website | Official homepage of the Nebraska Secretary of State (Flash/Dynamic HTML website) |
The current officeholder is Bob Evnen, who took office in 2019.
Organization
editThe secretary of state's office is composed of four divisions:
- The Business Services Division registers corporations, limited liability companies, limited partnerships, limited liability partnerships,[1] trade names and trademarks. This division is also responsible for filing liens under the Uniform Commercial Code,[2] licensing notaries public,[3] and administering Nebraska's address confidentiality program.[4]
- The Elections Division administers elections, including the implementation of the Help America Vote Act.
- The Records Management Division is responsible for storing state government records, converting them into different formats when necessary, and creates and administers records retention policies.
- The Licensing Division oversees the licensing of collection agencies, debt management agencies, private detectives, and polygraph and voice stress examiners.
Additional duties
editThe Nebraska secretary of state is the keeper of the Great Seal of the State of Nebraska, and the state's main advisor on youth civics education. The secretary is also in charge of filing, certifying, and distributing state agency rules and regulations which are to become part of the Nebraska Administrative Code. The secretary is the state's "chief protocol officer", with the duty of promoting commerce, cultural exchange and educational studies between Nebraska and foreign nations.
Boards and commissions
editThe Nebraska secretary of state holds ex officio these posts of the following boards and commissions:
- Chairperson of the Nebraska State Records Board, which oversees electronic access to state government information and advises on the implementation of the Records Management Act.
- Chairperson of the Nebraska Real Estate Commission, which licenses real estate brokers and agents and investigates complaints against licensees.
- Chairperson of the Nebraska Collection Agency Licensing Board, which is responsible for licensing collection agencies.
- Secretary of the Nebraska Board of Pardons, which considers applications for pardons of criminal convictions and commutations of sentences.
- Secretary of the Board of State Canvassers, which certifies results following each statewide election.
- Member of the Nebraska Accountability and Disclosure Commission, which administers and enforces state laws regarding ethics, campaign finance and lobbying.
List of secretaries of the Territory of Nebraska
edit| # | Image | Name[5] | Term of office | Party | Appointed By |
| 1 | Thomas B. Cuming[a] | 1854–1858[b] | Democratic | Franklin Pierce | |
| Acting | John B. Motley | 1858 | Unknown | ||
| 2 | J. Sterling Morton[c] | 1858–1861 | Democratic | James Buchanan | |
| 3 | Algernon S. Paddock[d] | 1861–1867 | Republican | Abraham Lincoln |
List of secretaries of the State of Nebraska
edit- Parties
Republican (22) Democratic (2) Fusion (Democratic/Populist) (1)
| # | Image | Name[5] | Term of office | Party |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Thomas P. Kennard[e] | 1867–1871 | Republican | |
| 2 | William H. James[f] | 1871–1873 | Republican | |
| 3 | John J. Gosper | 1873–1875 | Republican | |
| 4 | Bruno Tzschuck | 1875–1879 | Republican | |
| 5 | Samuel J. Alexander[6] | 1879–1883 | Republican | |
| 6 | Edward P. Roggen | 1883–1887 | Republican | |
| 7 | Gilbert L. Laws[g] | 1887–1889 | Republican | |
| 8 | Benjamin R. Cowdery[h] | 1889–1891 | Republican | |
| 9 | John Clayton Allen | 1891–1895 | Republican | |
| 10 | Joel A. Piper | 1895–1897 | Republican | |
| 11 | William F. Porter | 1897–1901 | Fusion (Democratic/Populist) | |
| 12 | George W. Marsh | 1901–1905 | Republican | |
| 13 | Algernon Galusha[7] | 1905–1907 | Republican | |
| 14 | George C. Junkin | 1907–1911 | Republican | |
| 15 | Addison Wait | 1911–1915 | Republican | |
| 16 | Charles W. Pool | 1915–1919 | Democratic | |
| 17 | Darius M. Amsberry | 1919–1923 | Republican | |
| – | Charles W. Pool | 1923–1927 | Democratic | |
| 18 | Frank Marsh Sr. | 1927–1933 | Republican | |
| 19 | Harry R. Swanson | 1933–1941 | Democratic | |
| – | Frank Marsh Sr.[i] | 1941–1951 | Republican | |
| 20 | James S. Pittenger[j] | 1951–1953 | Republican | |
| 21 | Frank Marsh Jr. | 1953–1971 | Republican | |
| 22 | Allen J. Beermann | 1971–1995 | Republican | |
| 23 | Scott Moore[k] | 1995–2000 | Republican | |
| 24 | John A. Gale[l] | 2000–2019 | Republican | |
| 25 | Bob Evnen | 2019–present | Republican |
Notes
edit- ^ Served as Acting Territorial Governor of Nebraska twice; first after the death of Francis Burt from October 18, 1854, to February 23, 1855, and second after the resignation of Mark W. Izard from October 25, 1857 to January 12, 1858.
- ^ Died while in office on March 23, 1858.
- ^ Served as Acting Territorial Governor of Nebraska twice; first after the resignation of William A. Richardson from December 5, 1858, to May 2, 1859, and second after the resignation of Samuel W. Black from February 24, 1861, to March 6, 1861.
- ^ Served as Acting Territorial Governor of Nebraska before the appointment of Alvin Saunders from March 6, 1861, to May 15, 1861.
- ^ Term of office began Feb. 21, 1867.
- ^ After the removal of Governor David Butler from office, William H. James served as Acting Governor of Nebraska for most of his term as Secretary of State, since at that time, under the Constitution of 1866, Nebraska had no lieutenant governor.
- ^ Resigned Nov. 20, 1889, after he was elected to fill the unexpired term in Congress caused by the death of James Laird.
- ^ Appointed by Governor John Milton Thayer to fill the vacancy created by the election of Gilbert L. Laws to the House of Representatives.
- ^ Died while in office on February 9, 1951.
- ^ Appointed Feb. 10, 1951, by Governor Val Peterson to fill the vacancy created by the death of Frank Marsh Sr.
- ^ Resigned to take a job with Union Pacific Railroad.[8]
- ^ Appointed Dec. 18, 2000, by Governor Mike Johanns to fill a vacancy created by the resignation of Scott Moore.
See also
editReferences
edit- ^ Nebraska Corporations Division
- ^ Nebraska UCC Division
- ^ Nebraska Notary Public Division
- ^ Nebraska Address Confidentiality Program
- ^ a b 2018-19 Nebraska Blue Book (PDF) (54th ed.). 2019. p. 422. Retrieved 30 December 2019.
- ^ "Republican Ticket". Nebraska State Journal. November 5, 1878. p. 2.
- ^ "Washington County Returns". Blair Courier. November 16, 1904. p. 4. Retrieved June 18, 2023.
- ^ Paul Hammel (March 21, 2017), "Longtime Nebraska Secretary of State John Gale won't run for re-election", Omaha World-Herald, retrieved November 21, 2022