Something unusual is happening in Nebraska Legislative District 12 — and it could play a role in the balance of power in the Nebraska Legislature.
Here’s what’s going on 🧵
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LD-12 (Ralston / Millard / Omaha) is one of the most competitive state legislative seats in Nebraska.
It has flipped before — and Democrats only lost it by about 4.6% in 2022.
This is a real pickup opportunity.
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And that matters right now.
If Democrats want to compete for power in the Nebraska Legislature — especially with potential vacancies and appointments in play — seats like LD-12 are critical.
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The incumbent, Merv Riepe (R), is not a typical partisan Republican.
He’s often described as a “swing vote” and has built a reputation as a pragmatic, moderate legislator.
That makes this a winnable — but not easy — race.
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On paper, this looks like a standard three-way primary:
• Merv Riepe (incumbent)
• Thomas Kastrup
• Christy Knorr
But that’s not the full story.
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Robin Richards — the 2022 Democratic nominee — is NOT on the ballot.
She came within roughly 500 votes of winning this seat last cycle.
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Richards says she was removed from the ballot due to a filing error.
Instead of dropping out, she’s running a write-in campaign.
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And this isn’t symbolic — it’s a real campaign:
• ~$62K raised
• ~$33K spent
• ~ $29K cash on hand
• active field operation (mail, yard signs, materials)
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For comparison:
• Thomas Kastrup: ~$40K raised, ~$21K cash on hand
• Christy Knorr: ~$1K raised, negative cash balance
This is a very unusual financial landscape for a race like this.
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That creates a rare situation:
The candidate who performed best in the last election — and currently has the strongest fundraising and endorsements — is not on the ballot.
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Because Nebraska uses a top-two primary system, this matters a lot.
Vote-splitting among anti-incumbent voters could determine who advances — not just who is strongest overall.
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There are a few possible outcomes:
• A ballot candidate consolidates and advances
• The field fragments, weakening the eventual challenger
• Richards draws significant write-in support, reshaping the race dynamics
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The key takeaway:
This is a highly distorted primary environment — where the result may not fully reflect who is strongest for the general election.
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And zooming out:
If #Democrats are going to offset losses elsewhere or prevent further consolidation of power, they need to win seats like LD-12.
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We’ll be watching this race closely as early voting continues and the May 12 primary approaches.
This is one of the most important — and unpredictable — state legislative races in Nebraska this year.
Rachel Murphy Azzara