Independent candidate Dan Osborn will run in Nebraska‘s 2026 U.S. Senate race, his campaign announced Tuesday.
Osborn lost an unexpectedly close race to Sen. Deb Fischer (R-NE) in 2024 after cultivating a pro-union, pro-border security, and pro-working class platform. He was considered one of the best independent candidates to run in 2024.
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“In a video announcement this morning, Dan vowed to fight for the everyday Nebraskans who are ignored by Senator Pete Ricketts and Congress,” Osborn’s campaign told the Washington Examiner.
“Dan knows this will be a tough fight that Ricketts will throw hundreds of thousands of dollars into, but he believes that Nebraska families deserve a fair shot. Dan will work to lower costs, secure the border, and take on the corruption in Washington, DC,” they added.
????MAJOR ANNOUNCEMENT????
— Dan Osborn (@osbornforne) July 8, 2025
Ok. You've all convinced me. I'm in.
I'm running for Senate against billionaire Pete Ricketts In Nebraska.
This race represents the foundational battle taking place in America right now:
The Billionaire Class vs. The Working Class
Who's with me? pic.twitter.com/QQmcq4H3bl
In his announcement video, a voiceover slammed President Donald Trump’s “big, beautiful bill” and Sen. Pete Ricketts’s (R-NE) support of it.
“Billionaire politician Pete Ricketts votes for historic tax cut for 1%,” it said. “This garbage bill just hurts workers.”
In the video, Osborn also attacked Ricketts for allegedly “buying” his Senate seat and said that he is running for the “Senate because Congress shouldn’t just be a playground for the rich. We gotta make things more affordable, secure the border, and take on the corruption in Washington.”
Ricketts’s campaign, in a statement to the Washington Examiner, criticized Osborn for possibly siding with Democrats if he is elected. Osborn did not clarify during his 2024 race which party he would caucus with.
“Senator Ricketts has consistently worked for and voted to secure the border and cut taxes for Nebraska workers, families, and seniors,” said Ricketts’s campaign spokesman Will Coup. “Dan Osborn is bought and paid for by his liberal, out-of-state, coastal donors. Dan Osborn will side with Chuck Schumer over Nebraska families and vote with Democrats to open the border, hike taxes, and stop the America First agenda.”
Osborn has been a thorn in the Nebraska Republican Party’s side since his 2024 run, and another Senate run will likely complicate things in a state where Democrats aren’t competitive statewide.
He lost to Fischer 53.19% to 46.52% in 2024. Osborn took millions from Democratic donors, though he denied the endorsement of the Democratic Party. He said he “didn’t ask for that money.”
“First of all, I’ve been a registered independent from the time I could vote,” Osborn told NBC News. “But second of all, I didn’t ask for that money. This time around, I’m not going to ask for it again. The Democrats are going to do what the Democrats do, and Republicans are going to do what the Republicans are going to do. And I just want to show the people that an independent can win in a state like Nebraska or any state, for that matter.”
Osborn said he did not vote for either President Donald Trump or Vice President Kamala Harris in the 2024 election, instead opting to write in United Auto Workers President Shawn Fain. He said Fain was one of his “personal heroes.”
TRUMP BACKS RICKETTS AS GOP SENATOR FACES LIKELY OSBORN CHALLENGE
On the issues, Osborn said he aligns with Trump on border security, has mixed feelings on his trade policies, and would’ve voted against his “big, beautiful bill.”
“It’s going to cut services for people. They’re going to have to cut through so much red tape to continue to have their special-needs kids or whatever the case they’re on these programs for,” he said. “And folks like Ricketts are going to continue to make millions more off of these cuts. I just don’t see how everybody didn’t have a problem with that.”