Senator Pete Ricketts, a Republican who was previously governor of the state, was appointed to his seat in 2023 after Ben Sasse resigned. He easily won a special election for the same seat in 2024, and is now seeking his first full term in office. Democrats are not fielding a candidate, leaving Dan Osborn, an independent veteran and former union leader, as the most serious challenger to Ricketts. Osborn ran for Nebraska’s other Senate seat in 2024, losing to Deb Fischer by less than seven percentage points in a state President Trump carried by more than 20 points. Nebraska has not been represented by an Independent since 1943.
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