Visits highlight role of Nebraska’s 2nd District as a swing district in U.S. House and presidential politics
By: Juan Salinas II
Nebraska Examiner
OMAHA — Former President Joe Biden highlighted harsh economic realities facing American families under President Donald Trump. And Kentucky Gov. Andy Beshear pitched a recipe for helping Democrats win in deep-red states.
Both headliners for the Nebraska Democrats’ top annual fundraiser Friday rallied a downtown Hilton crowd of 630 people headed into next year’s midterm elections, in which the Omaha-based 2nd Congressional District could play a crucial role. Another 220 watched from an overflow area.
Friday was one of Biden’s few public speaking events since dropping out of the 2024 presidential campaign under fire from some in the party about his electability following a shaky debate performance against Trump.
He criticized Trump on a variety of issues, from cutting Medicare in the “big, beautiful” tax and spending bill to Trump’s handling of the “strong economy” Biden said he left him. He said Trump had taken a wrecking ball to the Constitution.
“Folks, look, this isn’t a golden age,” Biden said. “The fact of the matter is that it is a very, very dark moment … But we’re in a situation where we had something very special happen just last Tuesday.”
The fundraiser followed strong national elections for Democrats on Tuesday. The party won most of its high-profile contests nationally, including the Governor’s Office in Virginia and the mayor’s race in New York. Some political observers have said the tone and mood of the electorate might hint at what’s possible in the midterms, when the party out of power typically gains seats.
Much of Biden’s speech focused on helping Democrats send a message to his successor: “You work for us, Mr. President. We don’t work for you. You work for us, not just billionaires and millionaires.”
Biden also touted some of his accomplishments as president, including working with Congress to pass the largest modern investment in American infrastructure, a bipartisan bill he passed with help from retiring Nebraska Republican U.S. Rep. Don Bacon and others.
Beshear, a potential 2028 Democratic presidential hopeful, spoke about how his approach to politics focuses on working for all Kentuckians, not just those who share his party. He said he governs in a way that can serve as a model for Democrats to win in deeply red, Republican states.
Beshear’s approach tries to bring party members and others together — including progressives, union members, centrists and some Republicans — over economic concerns, which lets him sidestep many of the social issues distracting other campaigns.
“We’ve got to get back to the work of showing people that we are spending all day, every day, trying to make their life a little bit better and a little bit easier,” Beshear said.
He visited Nebraska after having headed to South Carolina earlier this year to test the water for a potential bid. He also visited neighboring Iowa in 2024 to speak at a Democratic fundraiser.
Omaha Mayor John Ewing Jr. set much of the evening’s tone when he warmed up the crowd by putting on a blue and white “Make America Humane Again” hat — poking fun at Trump’s bright red “Make America Great Again” hats.
“Let’s make America humane again,” he said after being introduced as the first Democrat to lead Nebraska’s largest city in a dozen years.
Jane Kleeb, chair of the state party, said Friday that the blue “wave” Democrats want in 2026 started in May 2025 in Nebraska, with Ewing’s win over three-term Republican incumbent Mayor Jean Stothert.
Ewing criticized Trump’s handling of immigration policy and the ICE raids happening across the U.S. He mentioned the administration’s bulldozing of homeless encampments and sending the National Guard into cities. Democrats gathered as pro-Palestinian protesters demonstrated outside of the hotel.
“We are going to stand with our immigrants when the national state is trying to create chaos,” Ewing said. “We are going to build a space and a city and an economy that works for everybody, not just the rich.”
Republicans took notice of the Biden and Beshear visits. U.S. Sen. Pete Ricketts’ GOP campaign sent a truck with a digital ad on it driving through downtown Omaha during the fundraiser, attacking his registered nonpartisan opponent Dan Osborn by labeling him on it as the “future of the Democratic Party.”
The Nebraska Republican Party, in a statement, said, “If Nebraska Democrats think the presence of the former president will make people forget about the radical Democrats’ policies, inflation, open borders and out-of-control spending, they’re wrong.”
But local Democrats paid no mind, as many spoke in positive tones about the Democrats’ chances in future elections — especially in the Omaha-based 2nd Congressional District.
The Omaha-based district was the only swing district nationally to side with Democrats in 2024, when Trump won every contested swing state and won the presidency, except for the stray Electoral College vote that Nebraska allows its congressional districts to syphon off.
Omaha, along with the rest of the 2nd Congressional District, voted for Biden in 2020 and sided with former Vice President Kamala Harris in 2024.
And this year’s version of the 2nd District U.S. House race is shaping up to be another charged one, with a crowded Democratic primary vying to replace Republican U.S. Rep Don Bacon, who decided to retire early this year. Political experts view the seat as a possible pickup for Democrats.
That 2nd District slice of the 2026 midterm elections is emerging as crucial for the state and national Democratic Party as it tries to find a path toward retaking the House from Republicans. Mid-decade redistricting efforts, including one being discussed in Nebraska, have made that effort more complex.
Nebraska Democrats have said they have desires of winning beyond the 2nd District, especially in legislative races that could spell the difference between the ability to filibuster conservative legislation or not.
The Nebraska Democratic Party’s top annual fundraising event has a history of drawing major headliners, including former U.S. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz, a former vice presidential candidate. One reason: Kleeb, the state party chair, serves as a vice chair of the party at the national level.
The event is named for Ben Nelson, a former Nebraska governor and U.S. senator who cast a critical vote to help the party pass the Affordable Care Act under former President Barack Obama. His former vice president encouraged Democrats and others not to despair but to work.
“The American experiment is not going to end on our watch,” said Biden.