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— Zach Wendling Nebraska Examiner
OMAHA — The 2026 elections for 25 Nebraska legislative seats could end up among the most expensive legislative races in state history, with Omaha-area races appearing likely to decide the partisan split in the officially nonpartisan Nebraska Unicameral.
Between Jan. 1, 2025, and April 27, across 61 legislative candidates, campaigns had already directly raised more than $4.1 million and spent $2.25 million.
There is one more reporting period for the primary season: April 28 through June 16.
Fundraising patterns usually show a large influx of funds raised and spent in that period. These reported totals do not include outside spending, such as from political action committees.
In 17 of the 25 races this year, candidates combined have already exceeded six figures in funds raised for a part-time position that pays $12,000 a year, and nine of those have already combined to spend at least six figures.
The most expensive race so far is in west Omaha and the Elkhorn area, a Legislative District 4 rematch between incumbent State Sen. Brad von Gillern of Elkhorn, a Republican, and Cindy Maxwell-Ostdiek of Omaha, a nonpartisan progressive. The duo reported raising nearly $386,000 and spending almost $310,000 by the end of April.
The next most expensive races are in Legislative District 14, in Papillion and La Vista, with almost $290,000 raised and $207,000 spent, and Legislative District 18, in northwest Omaha, with $148,000 raised and almost $175,000 spent. Thousands more have come in via PACs, including pitting Republicans against one another in currently Republican-held districts.
Two Republicans and one Democrat face off in each of those districts.
In Nebraska, legislative races are officially nonpartisan, meaning a candidate’s political party affiliation doesn’t appear on the ballot. The top two finishers advance from the primary.
The least expensive races so far come in Legislative District 22 in northeast Nebraska, an uncontested race to succeed term-limited State Sen. Mike Moser of Columbus, and in Legislative District 41 in central Nebraska, a special election for a two-year term to succeed appointee State Sen. Fred Meyer of St. Paul and former State Sen. Dan McKeon of Amherst, who resigned in January.
So far, 2026 is keeping pace with a record year for legislative campaign finance in 2024, and candidate fundraising has already outpaced 2022, when the same seats were up: By the end of April in 2024, with 73 total legislative candidates across 25 races, campaigns had directly raised $4.06 million and spent $2.6 million.
By the end of April in 2022, with 65 total candidates across 24 races, campaigns had directly raised $2.67 million and spent $1.42 million.
Races to watch
The 49-member Legislature currently has 33 Republicans, 15 Democrats and one nonpartisan progressive who often sides with Democrats. Fifteen Republicans and nine Democrats are not up for election this cycle — three more Republicans are running unopposed, as is one Democrat.
Beyond the Legislative District 4 rematch and costly Legislative District 14 and Legislative District 18 races in northwest Omaha and the Papillion-La Vista area, respectively, other Omaha-area and Sarpy County races to watch include Legislative District 12 in south-central Omaha and Ralston, Legislative District 10 in central Douglas County, Legislative District 20 in central Omaha and Legislative District 36 in western and southern Sarpy County.
Legislative District 12 is the lone race this cycle where a Republican incumbent holds a district not won by President Donald Trump in 2024: State Sen. Merv Riepe of Ralston.
Riepe is seeking reelection against two Democrats and one Democratic write-in candidate. Riepe has taken a more moderate lean since his first four years in office, 2015-2019. He lost his 2018 reelection bid to former State Sen. Steve Lathrop of Omaha, a Democrat who returned to the Legislature after term limits. Riepe won his 2022 race over Robin Richards of Ralston, a Democrat, by 524 votes.
This time, Richards is running a write-in campaign after a bounced check led her to be removed from the ballot. She has surpassed Riepe in fundraising, raising $84,000 to his $68,000.
Fellow Omaha Democrats Thomas Kastrup, a Hartington native, and Christy Knorr followed with about $66,000 raised and $10,400 raised.
In 2022, the three most expensive races were in Legislative District 6, held by Democratic State Sen. Machaela Cavanaugh of Omaha; Legislative District 10, held by Democratic State Sen. Wendy DeBoer of Omaha; and Legislative District 20, where newcomer State Sen. John Fredrickson of Omaha, a Democrat, flipped a moderate Republican’s seat blue.
Cavanaugh and DeBoer are term-limited, and no Republican filed for Cavanaugh’s seat this time. The race to succeed DeBoer includes Democrat Cindy Johnson and Republican Rebecca Rens, where outside spending via a PAC connected to Gov. Jim Pillen’s daughter, Sarah, is backing Rens.
Fredrickson faces two Republican opponents. He was narrowly outspent in 2022 and raised more than $341,000 and spent almost $148,000 since his previous election. Republican opponent Chris Anderson has raised almost $40,000 and spent all but $600 of that. Republican opponent Dan Witt raised $14,100 and spent nearly $5,000 of that.
Republican State Sen. Rick Holdcroft of Bellevue is also facing another costly election in Legislative District 36 against Democrat Darin Tompkins, with $250,000 raised and more than $152,000 spent between the two. Holdcroft’s race was the fifth most expensive in 2022.
Outside of Omaha, State Sen. George Dungan of Lincoln, a Democrat who won his Legislative District 26 race by 224 votes in 2022, mirrored Fredrickson in fundraising and spending heading into 2026. Since 2022, Dungan has raised $319,000 and spent $146,000. His opponent, Republican Tobias Howard of Lincoln, has not yet reported any funds raised or spent.
The threshold before needing to form a campaign finance committee with the Nebraska Accountability and Disclosure Commission is $5,000 raised, received or spent in a given year.
Von Gillern said he is getting a “good response” while meeting with constituents and has been out six days a week since the legislative session ended in mid-April. He said, “Obviously” property taxes are coming up more than anything and that voters are interested in how lawmakers worked to balance the state budget.
