What type of legislature does every state, except Nebraska, have?

Every state in the U.S., with the exception of Nebraska, has a bicameral legislature. This means that the legislative body is split into two separate chambers or houses, typically referred to as the House of Representatives and the Senate. This structure allows for a system of checks and balances within the legislature, as each chamber must agree on legislation for it to be passed.

In a bicameral system, the two chambers often represent different interests or constituencies, allowing for a more thorough examination of laws and an opportunity for a greater diversity of opinions to be voiced in the legislative process. This dual-chamber system is prominent in many democratic governments, modeled in part after the British Parliament, and aims to promote more comprehensive governance by engaging more legislators in the law-making process.

In contrast, Nebraska uniquely operates with a unicameral legislature, which consists of only one chamber. There are also other legislative structures mentioned, like parliamentary or tricameral systems, but these are not applicable to the majority of U.S. states. A tricameral legislature, for example, is extremely rare and not a feature of any U.S. state government. Thus, the identification of a bicameral system as the norm for state legislatures—aside from