March 11 we advanced my “constitutional carry” bill, LB 773, to the next round of debate. The opposition to the bill conducted an eight-hour filibuster. We needed thirty three votes for the cloture motion to be successful and we received exactly that. After the roll-call vote was tallied, three senators changed their vote to a “yes” for a total of thirty-six yes, nine no, three present not voting, one excused.

I cannot thank my fellow senators enough for their patience and support, and for standing with me through a robust eight-hour filibuster. I also want to say how humbled and honored I am for the overwhelming support I’ve received from thousands of Nebraskans whose advocacy and efforts to promote gun rights in Nebraska made this vote today possible. The help we received from the 2nd House was decisive.

At the end of the day, LB 773 is about rights. They are endowed by our creator and made unalienable and protected by our state and federal constitutions. Law abiding Nebraskans should not have to pay money and jump through government hoops to exercise a constitutionally-protected right they already have. Twenty-two other states have already passed this law, and Nebraska shares a border with five of them. Thankfully we had thirty-three senators willing to stand up for our gun rights, and trust our citizens to lawfully exercise them.

I believe this vote was a referendum on gun rights in Nebraska. The senators know the voters are watching. They know how much support this issue has with the public. Second amendment voters are some of the most politically active citizens there are.   

Today was the first round of debate, and we still have two more rounds to go. Both of these could also be filibustered, so the fight on behalf of the people’s rights will continue. But today was a big victory because we’ve moved this bill much closer to the governor’s desk. The Governor supports LB 773 and is ready to sign it into law.