Nebraska And West Virginia Democrats Battle For Open Seat After Don Bacon Opts Out

Voters in Nebraska and West Virginia went to the polls on Tuesday as Democrats sought a chance to run in an open seat in Nebraska’s 2nd Congressional District after Rep. Don Bacon opted not to run for reelection.

“Voters are going to the polls in Nebraska and West Virginia on Tuesday, with Democrats vying for the chance to run in an open seat in Nebraska that the party has long been eyeing”

CBS News

In Nebraska, CBS News said Republican Omaha City Council member Brinker Harding ran unopposed in the GOP primary, while Democrats battled over whether John Cavanaugh or Denise Powell could best defend the district’s so-called “blue dot” electoral-vote split.

CBS News

CBS News also said GOP Sen. Pete Ricketts faced four primary challengers while two Democrats ran, with the state Democratic party endorsing Dan Osborn for the general election as an independent.

In West Virginia, CBS News reported GOP Sen. Shelley Moore Capito faced five challengers and five Democrats were on the ballot to secure the nomination for November.

The Nebraska Examiner described the NE-02 Democratic primary as drawing more than $5.6 million in outside ad spending, with advertising largely supporting Denise Powell and opposing John Cavanaugh.

The Nebraska Examiner said the influx of outside money led some to decry the spending as “dark money,” and it described a surge in negative advertising in the NE-02 Democratic primary.

CNN reported that the Democratic quarreling over Nebraska’s unique electoral-vote method has drawn “a deluge of outside spending,” with more than $6 million in advertising alone, according to AdImpact.

CNN

CNN said Powell argued that electing Cavanaugh would threaten the blue dot because he could no longer fight Republican efforts to change state election law and make Nebraska a winner-take-all system like 48 other states.

In response, CNN reported that Cavanaugh aired ads calling his opponent “Dark Money Denise,” and his campaign and allies planted yard signs vowing to “stand up to Trump and defend the blue dot.”

The Nebraska Examiner added that the biggest spender was Fight for Nebraska PAC, a Nebraska-based Super PAC created in March that spent more than $1.2 million on ads supporting Powell and $653,000 on ads opposing Cavanaugh.

With Rep. Don Bacon retiring, the NE-02 Democratic primary is poised to determine who faces sole Republican nominee Brinker Harding in November, and CNN framed the contest as one that could help determine control of Congress.

“14:28 News Story Election 2026 Government & Politics Outside spending reaches fever pitch in NE-02 Dem primary as candidates spar over ‘dark money’ By: Molly Ashford, Nebraska Public Media News - May 11, 2026 2:28 pm OMAHA — The Democratic primary for Nebraska’s 2nd Congressional District has attracted more than $5”

Nebraska Examiner

CNN said Trump endorsed Harding, setting up a contest that would measure the president’s popularity in the 2nd Congressional District, where Trump has lost two straight elections and where the blue dot’s Electoral College vote is at issue.

The Nebraska Examiner described how outside spending is coming through independent expenditures defined by the Federal Election Commission, and it said candidates can’t directly coordinate with PACs.

CNN reported that two outside progressive super PACs invested more than $1 million on the Omaha airwaves seeking to amplify Powell’s argument that if Cavanaugh is elected and gives up his state legislature seat, Republican Gov. Jim Pillen would fill it with someone who would vote to eliminate the blue dot.

In Nebraska’s broader Senate races, CBS News said Sen. Pete Ricketts is focusing on a matchup against Osbon in November, while Nebraska has not elected a Democrat to the Senate since 2006 when Sen. Bill Nelson defeated Ricketts.