Ernie Chambers

Ernest William Chambers (born July 10, 1937) is an American politician and civil rights activist who represented North Omaha's 11th District in the Nebraska State Legislature from 1971 to 2009 and again from 2013 to 2021. He could not run in 2020 due to term limits.

Chambers is the longest-serving state senator in Nebraska history, having represented North Omaha for 46 years. For most of his career, Chambers was the only nonwhite senator. He is the only African-American to have run for governor and the first to have run for the U.S. Senate in Nebraska history. For years he was the only openly atheist member of any state legislature in the United States.