McGraw: Nebraska stuck with Ricketts, but Osborn made it a fight

If you were rooting for an upset in Nebraska, it got close. Not close enough.

Republican Sen. Pete Ricketts defeated independent Dan Osborn in Nebraska’s U.S. Senate race, The Associated Press projected early Wednesday, Nov. 4, after a long night of counting. Ricketts wins his first full term, and both of Nebraska’s Senate seats stay in Republican hands, as they have been since 2012.

In case you missed how we got here

Osborn, a former union leader, ran in 2024 too and lost to Sen. Deb Fischer by fewer than seven points. This time Democrats stayed out entirely. Their primary winner, Cindy Burbank, withdrew in July, and the state party had already endorsed Osborn. Going into Tuesday, the polling average had Ricketts up about 1.7 points, 47.2% to 45.5%.

Wait, would Nebraska have been the first independent state?

No, and it’s worth clearing up. An Osborn win would have given Nebraska an independent senator, not made it an “independent state.” Bernie Sanders of Vermont and Angus King of Maine are independents serving right now, though both caucus with Democrats. Nebraska has even done it before: George Norris won as an independent in 1936.

What would have been new is Osborn’s promise to skip both parties’ caucuses and form his own “Independent Senatorial Caucus.”

What it means anyway

A rare bright spot for the GOP. Ricketts’ win came on a night when Democrats flipped Senate seats from North Carolina to Texas and took control of the chamber, according to The Associated Press. Holding Nebraska keeps the Republican minority from shrinking further.

The playbook got a real test. Democrats stepping aside for an independent in a deep-red state ran close twice in a row. Expect both parties to study it before 2028.

My take

To be honest, Osborn proved that running without a jersey can get you close in a red state. Close, twice, is also a pattern. Whether it’s a ceiling or a warm-up is the question both parties will be asking.

There’s no sense in calling Nebraska competitive off one race. But nobody should be calling it boring either.

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