Mike Flood (Nebraska politician)

Mike Flood (born 1975) is a broadcaster and lawyer from Norfolk, Nebraska who served in the Nebraska Legislature from 2005 to 2013. He served as Speaker of the Legislature from 2007 to 2013.

Personal life

He was born on February 23, 1975, in Omaha, Nebraska and graduated from University of Notre Dame in 1997 and from the University of Nebraska-Lincoln in 2001. He is a board member for Lavitsef Inc., Norfolk Rotary Club, Nebraska Broadcasters Association, Norfolk Community Healthcare Clinic, Madison Community Club, Nebraska/Madison County Bar Association. He is also the legal counsel for the Madison County Agricultural Society and the founder and past sponsor for the Norfolk Youth Leadership Council.

State legislature

He was elected in 2004 to represent the 19th Nebraska legislative district.

In October 2010, Time magazine on-line named him as one of their "40 Under 40" rising stars of American politics.^[1]

Flood was the author of Nebraska's law banning abortions after 20 weeks, based on the claim, described by the American Congress of Obstetricians and Gynecologists as lacking legitimate evidence, that the fetus feels pain. After a case in which a woman was forced to give birth to a non-viable fetus that suffocated fifteen minutes after birth, Flood defended the law and asserted that it worked as intended, saying, "Even in these situations where the baby has a terminal condition or there's not much chance of surviving outside of the womb, my point has been and remains that is still a life."^[2][3][4]

Flood left the Nebraska Legislature in 2013 due to term limits. He initially announced that he would run for governor in 2014, but then bowed out of the race in December 2012.^[5]

References