Dan Frei makes it official, files to challenge Rep. Don Bacon in 2nd District

PAPILLION — Former Tea Party darling Dan Frei of Omaha filed late last week to challenge U.S. Rep. Don Bacon of Papillion in the 2024 GOP primary in the 2nd District.

Frei had no immediate comment Saturday about filing. He told the Examiner in early January that he was seriously considering a bid against Bacon. Frei later courted partisans attending a Nebraska Republican Party fundraiser in Omaha involving Arizona U.S. Senate candidate Kari Lake, who has still not conceded her loss in Arizona’s 2022 governor’s race.

Trump factor

Some leaders in the Nebraska GOP have said they prefer candidates who express more loyalty to former President Donald Trump than Bacon does. Bacon endorsed Trump in 2016 and 2020. But he has said he would not endorse Trump in the 2024 GOP presidential primary. Trump, during an unrelated visit to Nebraska in 2022, called Bacon “bad news.”

Bacon, who is running for his fifth term in Congress, is a retired Air Force brigadier general. Frei is a regional sales director for GreatAmerica Financial Services, with a background in banking, sales and information technology.

A small group of state and county party leaders worked with some of Trump’s political team to recruit potential challengers for Bacon. People close to Frei have said privately that he is trying to secure Trump’s endorsement, which would boost Frei’s ability to raise money.

Frei got close once

Frei narrowly lost a shoestring GOP primary bid in 2014 to then-U.S. Rep. Lee Terry, R-Neb., raising only $51,000. Bacon, a multi-term incumbent like Terry, is sitting on a seven-figure war chest of campaign funds. Terry at the time faced criticism for supporting a bank bailout.

Frei said earlier this month that he was frustrated by a lack of progress by Congress on the national debt, border enforcement and repeated use of short-term funding measures, or  continuing resolutions. He described himself as a fiscal and social conservative.

Local political observers are mixed on the impact of Republicans embracing or distancing themselves from Trump in the Omaha-based district. Among Republican primary voters, Trump remains popular.

But in 2020, Bacon got more primary votes in the 2nd District than Trump did. President Joe Biden won the district, giving him an Electoral College vote. Nebraska awards one electoral vote to the winner in each congressional district and two to the statewide winner, which was Trump in 2016 and 2020.

Frei’s candidacy complicates an always competitive race in the state’s most politically balanced congressional district. The 2nd District includes Douglas, Sarpy and Saunders Counties. It has the largest number of Democrats among the state’s three congressional districts.

Republican Michael Connely of York has also filed to run as a pauper in the 2nd District race. (York is in the 3rd District).

Vargas likely awaits GOP winner

Democratic State Sen. Tony Vargas of Omaha likely awaits the winner of the GOP primary. He started his campaign expecting a rematch of a race he lost to Bacon by about three percentage points in 2022. Some say he may fare better in a presidential election year. His campaign had no immediate comment on Frei’s filing.

Some Republicans blamed Frei for Terry losing the 2014 general election to the late Rep. Brad Ashford, D-Neb. Some Frei backers have said they are OK with Bacon losing a general election to a Democrat.

A spokeswoman for the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee said the group expected challengers for Bacon because of the way he plays “political games.”

“It’s no surprise challengers are lining up when Don Bacon has become the definition of a Washington politician who misleads voters every time he opens his mouth,” she said.

Bacon, in a statement from his campaign on Saturday, emphasized his results.

“I’ve been rated the most effective Republican in the House with the most bills signed into law by any Republican,” he said. “I’m the top advocate in the House for America’s national security. I am dedicated to representing NE02 and keeping a conservative majority in the House. Without NE02, Hakeem Jeffries will be Speaker.”

Smith also picked up GOP challenger

Rep. Adrian Smith, R-Neb., has also picked up a Republican primary challenger in the 3rd District: John Walz of Hastings,  an engineer who has worked in the biofuels industry.

Walz, in announcing his bid, said he is running as a “MAGA” or Trump Republican. He said in a followup statement that he wants “to restore the federal government to its intended role as a constitutional republic.” He said the government reaches too far into too many areas where it should have little or no influence.

He criticized trade deals and large businesses making it difficult for American competitors to fight on a fair playing field and said he would work against “enemies” of the republic.

Smith’s campaign had no immediate comment on Walz’s entry into the race. Earlier this month, when announcing his filing to run for a tenth term, Smith criticized the Biden administration’s border enforcement policies, said he would continue his work for farmers and ranchers against regulators and said he would fight “a woke agenda driven by liberal extremists.”

He said he would prioritize tax relief and trade.

Smith represents one of the most conservative districts in the nation, which covers much of the central and western two-thirds of the state.