Ricketts wins GOP Senate primary as Burbank claims Democratic nomination

U.S. Sen. Pete Ricketts claimed the Republican nomination for the Senate seat Tuesday as he sought reelection to his first full six-year term. 

The former two-term Nebraska governor ran well ahead of Todd Knobel of Lincoln and Debb Axtell Schultz of Grand Island. Trailing were Eric Mortimer of Kearney and Mac Stevens of Bushnell in what was a fairly straightforward primary election.

On the Democratic side of the ballot, Cindy Burbank of Omaha claimed the nomination, outpolling William Forbes of Paxton by a wide margin in what the New York Times called one of the most unusual contests in the nation.

Burbank has previously said she wants to win the primary to drop out and make way for independent candidate Dan Osborn, who is challenging Ricketts.

She said Tuesday that she plans on staying in the race until she knows for certain she can't win in November. If she feels certain of that, she will drop out before ballots are printed in November because she doesn't want anyone to waste their vote.

She noted Tuesday that all she has said previously is that she will not support Ricketts. "I'm trying to make Ricketts spend as much money as he can," she said. "... I want to be a thorn in that man's side." 

Meanwhile, she said she was enjoying seeing the results at her own election night party in Kearney. "I'm shocked and pretty pleased," said Burbank, 62. She has worked for four different railroads and as a pharmacy technician. Now retired, she also has taught classes at Iowa Western Community College. 

"I'm going to take a day or two off and breathe," she said, adding that she is hoping to get some funding so she can put out some campaign signs. "It's been a fun ride, it really has been. I thought it was going to be a lot more work."

Osborn is a labor leader who ran unsuccessfully against Sen. Deb Fischer, R-Neb., in 2024. Osborn has to petition to appear on the general election ballot in November and reportedly is collecting signatures to make that happen.

The Nebraska Democratic Party did not initially have a candidate in the race. Burbank and Forbes filed on the last day possible to be eligible for the primary election.

Burbank was briefly removed from the ballot and then restored after a series of court actions that ended with a reversal by the Nebraska Supreme Court, which directed the judge to order that she be certified to appear on the ballot.

Burbank lists her platform as getting money out of politics, government and corporate accountability, empowering the Federal Railroad Administration, enacting term limits and affordable health care for all. 

Forbes, a registered Democrat, is a pro-life activist pastor who voted three times for President Donald Trump but has said in campaign messages that he would stand up to Trump. 

In a text Tuesday night, Forbes congratulated Burbank on securing the Democratic nomination. He urged her not to drop out to clear the field for Osborn but to stay in the race and fight. 

"Nebraska Democrats don't need another polite placeholder who folds before the real fight even starts just so some fake independent can waltz in unchallenged," he said. "We need a battle-tested fighter willing to rebuild this party and actually win again." 

The Nebraska Democratic Party, however, has called him a far-right operative, possibly even a Ricketts plant, who is trying to play spoiler and ensure a Ricketts win. Osborn also has accused Ricketts of being behind Forbes' candidacy and his campaign has denied involvement with Burbank.

Rickett's campaign denies any dealings with Forbes.

Ricketts said after casting his ballot Tuesday that Burbank's plan to drop out of the race if she wins the primary in favor of Osborn signals that Osborn is a Democrat.

Meanwhile, Mike Marvin of Omaha, a former leader in the state employees' union, led Early Starkey of Minatare in vying for the Legal Marijuana NOW nomination. Starkey and the party's chairman have accused Marvin of running to clear a path for Osborn, the World-Herald previously reported. Marvin has denied being a plant for anyone else on social media. 

Ricketts was appointed to his Senate seat in 2023 after former U.S. Sen. Ben Sasse resigned to become president of the University of Florida. Ricketts won a special election in 2024.

After voting Tuesday, Ricketts said affordability is the issue he hears Nebraskans talk about most as he travels across the state. Inflation, he said, surged to a four-decade high during the administration of former President Joe Biden before moderating. 

However, the U.S. Labor Department reported Tuesday that the Consumer Price Index rose 3.8% in April from a year earlier, driven largely by energy prices. Average gas prices were just more than $4.50 in the U.S. on Tuesday, according to AAA, with the Nebraska average just topping $4.

Senate Republicans, he said, are working to put money back in Americans' pockets through measures such as the working families tax cuts, with not tax on debt or overtime and deductions for seniors. They next plan to work on a measure to make housing more affordable.

"We've got more work to do, but we're going to keep trying to put more money back," he said.

Ricketts planned to attend an election night party in Kearney on Tuesday. "We thought we'd change things up," he said. 

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