Lynne Walz, a former state legislator, won the Democratic primary for governor of Nebraska on Tuesday, according to The Associated Press, setting up a challenging general election attempt to unseat Gov. Jim Pillen, the Republican incumbent.
Even in a national political environment that could favor Democrats, Ms. Walz faces an uphill fight in her campaign against Mr. Pillen, who won his primary on Tuesday and who defeated his Democratic opponent four years ago by 23 percentage points.
Democrats have not held the Nebraska governorship since the 1990s, and the party has long struggled to connect with voters outside of Omaha and Lincoln, the largest population centers.
Ms. Walz, who grew up on a farm, has tried to present herself to voters as a different kind of Democrat. Her campaign website describes her support of the police, her Lutheran faith and her past jobs planting onions and working at a deli.
Ms. Walz’s campaign said that the candidate’s husband is a third cousin of Gov. Tim Walz of Minnesota, a Nebraska-born Democrat who was the party’s vice-presidential nominee in 2024. The two politicians have met but are not close, her campaign said.
Mr. Pillen, a veterinarian and farmer who played football at the University of Nebraska, defeated a candidate backed by Donald J. Trump to win the Republican nomination for his first term in 2022.
Mr. Pillen has aligned himself with Mr. Trump since taking office, and he is running for re-election with the president’s endorsement.
Last year, Mr. Pillen spoke alongside Trump administration officials to announce that Nebraska was making soda and other sugary drinks ineligible for purchase with SNAP benefits, and that the state would seek to enforce Medicaid work requirements.
But his first term has also had setbacks. He failed to convince enough members of the State Legislature to change Nebraska to a winner-take-all method in the Electoral College, as Mr. Trump has sought. Nebraska is one of two states that allocate an electoral vote to the winner of each congressional district in presidential elections, giving Democrats an opportunity to pick up an electoral vote even when Republican candidates dominate statewide.
Mr. Pillen’s office was also named in a critical report by the state auditor’s office this year that took issue with a no-bid $2.5 million contract for an economic development project. According to that audit, Mr. Pillen’s office recommended granting the contract, which the auditor said was awarded contrary to state policy. A spokeswoman for the governor did not respond to a request for comment on that report.
Though Nebraska Republicans consistently win statewide races by large margins, Democrats are optimistic this year about flipping the Omaha-area congressional seat held by Representative Don Bacon, a moderate Republican who is not running for another term.
An independent candidate for U.S. Senate, Dan Osborn, is also hoping to mount a competitive race against Senator Pete Ricketts, the Republican incumbent.
Mitch Smith is a Chicago-based national correspondent for The Times, covering the Midwest and Great Plains.
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