Nebraska races to watch for the 2026 midterms

LINCOLN — Election Day is here. Nebraska has received more national attention than usual, as a handful of races in the Cornhusker State are viewed as competitive. Here are some key races to watch closely. 

Polls open for 12 hours at 8 a.m. Central time/7 a.m. Mountain time. Mail-in ballots must be returned by the time polls close.

Who will win the bitter Senate race?

Nebraska will finally know who wins the heated Senate race between incumbent Sen. Pete Ricketts, a Republican, and registered nonpartisan Dan Osborn. Three other third-party candidates are also on the ballot. This race has seen plenty of twists and turns (and campaign songs!).

Osborn lost to Sen. Deb Fischer in 2024 by about 7 percentage points; the former labor leader hopes to improve on that margin. The Ricketts’ campaign hopes its strategy of labeling Osborn as a Democrat works. 

The last time Nebraska elected a non-Republican to the Senate was in 2006, when Ricketts handily lost to then-Democratic Sen. Ben Nelson. 

That was also the last time a Democrat won any election statewide. Osborn has repeatedly said he wouldn’t caucus with either party in the Senate. 

The governor’s race: Jim Pillen vs. Lynne Walz

Few national pundits, pollsters or leading political figures, from President Donald Trump and Vice President JD Vance to Democratic Kentucky Gov. Andy Beshear, had the race for Nebraska governor on their map.

Nebraska Gov. Jim Pillen, a Republican, is running for reelection, and similar to Ricketts, he’s received national support to boost his chances, including $2 million from the Republican Governors Association. Former Democratic state Sen. Lynne Walz, however, has also received support, including more than $500,000 from the Democratic Governors Association, which Beshear chairs.

Pillen and Walz also face former state Sen. Brett Lindstrom, running under the America First Party, and Rick Beard of the Legal Marijuana NOW Party.

Walz would need to follow in the footsteps of Nelson, who unseated Republican Gov. Kay Orr in 1990. He would go on to safely win reelection in 1994 before being elected to the Senate in 2000.

Will NE-02 go blue or again defy expectations?

Nebraska’s most politically divided and diverse congressional district has dimmed a bit in terms of the national spotlight as the race is viewed as one of the easiest pickups for Democrats this cycle. Still, the red-leaning 2nd Congressional District has fooled political analysts before under retiring Rep. Don Bacon. 

Bacon beat Brad Ashford, the last Democrat to represent the district, in 2016; since then, Bacon has won five terms.  

The question is whether Denise Powell can regain the seat for Democrats or if Brinker Harding can bring it home like Bacon. 

Omaha-area legislative races

A trio of Omaha-area Republican legislative incumbents faces tough reelection fights: state Sen. Brad von Gillern vs. registered nonpartisan Cindy Maxwell-Ostdiek (Legislative District 4), state Sen. Merv Riepe of Ralston vs. Democrat Christy Knorr (Legislative District 12) and state Sen. Rick Holdcroft of Bellevue vs. Democrat Darin Tompkins (Legislative District 36). All three districts are in the 2nd Congressional District.

Von Gillern and Holdcroft fell below their opponents in the low-turnout primary, while Riepe faced three Democrats but hovered below 50%. Von Gillern has been eyed as the potential next speaker of the Legislature. His fate could decide a cascade of leadership positions for the 2027 session.

If Republicans face a tough night, Democrats are eyeing two pickup opportunities for open seats: Legislative District 18, between Democrat Jess Goldoni of Omaha and Taylor Royal of Bennington, and Legislative District 14 in neighboring Sarpy County, between Republican Bill Bowes of La Vista and Democrat SuAnn Witt of Papillion.

Conservatives, meanwhile, are still trying to pick up seats, starting in the Omaha-Bennington Legislative District 10, between Democrat Cindy Johnson and Republican Rebecca Rens. Republicans are also trying to unseat Democratic incumbents in Omaha’s Legislative District 20 (state Sen. John Fredrickson vs. Republican Chris Anderson) or Lincoln’s Legislative District 26 (state Sen. George Dungan vs. Republican Tobias Howard).

The Legislature is currently split with 33 Republicans, 15 Democrats and one progressive nonpartisan. 

It takes 33 votes to overcome filibusters and advance certain legislation, and 30 votes to overcome a gubernatorial veto or change legislative rules. Lawmakers don’t caucus by party, and a candidate’s party isn’t on the ballot.

Three honorable mentions

Nebraska’s 1st Congressional District between Rep. Mike Flood and Democratic challenger Chris Backemeyer has gotten a bit of attention as the national political environment for Republicans has deteriorated. Watch for a closer margin than Flood’s last two races (or an upset, which would mean a historic night for Democrats).

Nebraska voters will choose a new secretary of state from Scott Petersen (Republican), Sarah Slattery (Democrat), Paul Rumbaugh (Working People Party) and Bob Krist (America First Party). Incumbent Secretary of State Bob Evnen lost the GOP primary to Petersen, a challenger from Evnen’s right. The other candidates have criticized Petersen for echoing election-integrity concerns raised by President Donald Trump and others, which could split the vote. 

Voters will weigh in on proposed Constitutional Amendment 1 on their ballots to decide whether to allow state lawmakers to serve up to three consecutive four-year terms, instead of the current limit of two terms. But in an anti-incumbent environment, the sponsor of the measure, state Sen. Rob Dover of Norfolk, is less optimistic about the chances. The proposal advanced from the Legislature 39-10, but many lawmakers now expect it to fail, perhaps even more than in 2012 when voters rejected a similar proposal.

Voting ends at 8 p.m. Central Time Tuesday.