Nebraska GOP fight with delegation spills over into its endorsements

LINCOLN — For the first time in their elected runs, none of Nebraska’s five-member, all-GOP congressional delegation received an endorsement from the Nebraska Republican Party.

And none of them sought the state party’s endorsements, which were made Saturday.

Instead, the party’s State Central Committee endorsed Republican challengers to three GOP incumbents: former Air Force Lt. Col. John Glen Weaver, who is running against U.S. Sen. Pete Ricketts; Omaha businessman Dan Frei, running against 2nd District Rep. Don Bacon; and Hastings engineer John Walz, running against 3rd District Rep. Adrian Smith. 

The central committee did not endorse candidates in the other two top federal races involving Sen. Deb Fischer and Rep. Mike Flood, who haven’t drawn a Republican challenger. 

Nebraska GOP chairman Eric Underwood had no immediate comment on the endorsements or the party’s process. In a text message, he said his team needed time to finish its press release. 

One Republican who attended Saturday’s meeting, who spoke on condition of anonymity, said, “You can’t win if you don’t play.”

Others on the committee who opposed the congressional incumbents have said delegation members sometimes act as if they lead the party, not vice versa.

Party tension with delegation

Tension has existed between the state party and its top elected officials since Nebraska GOP leadership changed hands in the summer of 2022, from party workers loyal to Ricketts to populists loyal to former President Donald Trump and some former insiders who wanted to diminish Ricketts’ influence over the party.

One of the chief complaints from people supporting the leadership change was that the party under Ricketts took sides in some high-profile GOP vs. GOP primaries.

Internal vote counts, gathered from multiple sources, showed that Weaver secured the most support in Saturday’s elections, with 103 of 144 possible votes. Frei received 100 votes and Walz 96. Tallies were cobbled together because the meeting was closed to the press.

Weaver said it felt great to have active Republicans from across the state back his bid. He said he was the only Senate candidate who asked for the endorsement. In 2022, he lost the 1st District GOP primary to Rep. Mike Flood, R-Neb., earning 7% of the vote.

Weaver told the central committee he would support the House Freedom Caucus as a Senate affiliate if elected. 

“People here are passionate about saving our country,” Weaver said of the central committee’s meeting in Bellevue. “It’s not like it’s a bunch of crazy people who got together in a room.”

Ricketts, reached at the Nebraska Walk for Life in Lincoln, which took place during the GOP’s meeting, declined to discuss what the state GOP was doing on Saturday.

“No, I’d rather not talk about that,” he said.

He did not explain why his campaign did not seek the party’s endorsement.

His campaign had no comment Saturday evening about Weaver’s endorsement.

State party endorsements

These days, state party endorsements carry little weight beyond signaling to the public about a candidate’s philosophical bent. However, political observers said the absence of the party’s endorsement could have a cost.  

Not many political observers expect the endorsed candidates to see a major infusion of cash, because the state GOP’s fundraising has fallen off since the transition to new leadership. The biggest bump could be in energy from some activist Republicans.

Additionally, state parties have access to a steeply discounted postage rate often used by campaigns to send direct mail. Some Republicans told the Examiner that candidates in GOP primaries with an endorsed opponent might not get access to the discount.

Frei, who has said he would join the Freedom Caucus if elected, nearly upset Rep. Lee Terry in the 2014 GOP primary, losing by 6 percentage points. He has embraced Trump and positioned his candidacy as an effort to excite the populist wing of the party.

He said he was pleased with the party’s endorsement. In a tweet Saturday, he thanked the committee and said he was “honored to receive your trust.” He said he looked forward to helping secure the border and boosting fiscal responsibility.

“It was a really good day,” he said.

Bacon responds

Bacon, who represents the state’s most politically balanced congressional district, expressed disappointment about Frei’s endorsement.

“Most state parties do not go against incumbents,” he said in a statement after the vote. He said if Frei won the primary, he would struggle to compete in a general election against Democratic State Sen. Tony Vargas of Omaha. Bacon said Frei might only earn 42%-43% of the vote in November.

“I know that my record of results will prevail this May and November,” Bacon said. “I am a common-sense conservative who is able to reach across the aisle and find areas of consensus. … I’ve been the conservative on key issues.”

He said he supports a strong national defense and a balanced budget amendment. He said he opposes much of the spending in federal budgets proposed by Democrats, including the most recent pandemic aid that he said made inflation worse.

Vargas’ campaign, in a statement, said Bacon is paying the price for saying one thing in Omaha and another in Washington, D.C.

Walz, who worked in the biofuels industry, said he was grateful for the endorsement. He said it would help present “all options to the electorate.” He has said he is running as a “MAGA” or Trump Republican.

Smith’s campaign had no immediate comment about the endorsement. During a brief interview at the Walk for Life before the vote, Smith acknowledged he had not sought the party’s endorsement.

On Sunday, his campaign issued a press release touting his endorsements from 54 elected Nebraska Republicans.

Process changed

Party leaders said in internal emails reviewed by the Examiner that the state GOP’s constitution requires all candidates, including incumbents, to ask for the party’s endorsement. 

For years, high-level Nebraska GOP incumbents have received a phone call or message from the state party asking if they would like to be endorsed. If the answer was yes, they typically received it, said people familiar with the process. 

This year, state GOP leaders created a new endorsement process for incumbents and non-incumbents. It required candidates to fill out questionnaires, which some privately mocked.

Among the questions incumbents were reported asked: Have you reviewed the Nebraska State Constitution Chapter 32 and your elected position’s job description? What tenets of the NEGOP platform relate specifically to your elected office and why?

Among the questions it asked first-time candidates: Are you an introvert or extrovert? What are your hobbies? What does the word integrity mean to you? 

One candidate compared the questions to a college seminar. Another said it showed no respect for candidates’ time. A consultant with experience in Nebraska races said they expected a question about someone’s “favorite flavor of ice cream.” All of those interviewed spoke on condition of anonymity for fear of reprisal.

A few defended the new endorsement process, saying it expanded the number of rank-and-file Republicans involved in decision-making instead of limiting it to a handful of kingmakers.

Delegation members skipped questionnaire

None of the congressional incumbents filled out the questionnaires, the Examiner confirmed. 

Fischer said before the Walk for Life that the state GOP previously endorsed Republican incumbents in good standing. She said Nebraskans know who she is — and that she’s conservative. 

“I’ve got a record,” she said.

Bacon had expected backlash from the party because he has sometimes disagreed with Trump. He said on Tuesday that while he preferred other GOP candidates running this year, he would support the GOP nominee for president this fall, including Trump, against President Joe Biden. 

Flood, whose Democratic opponent in the 1st District, State Sen. Carol Blood, kicked off her campaign Saturday, said at the Walk for Life that he has GOP bona fides.

“I’ve been active in the Republican Party since fourth grade,” Flood said. “I was attending fundraisers for (former Gov.) Kay Orr and (former U.S. Sen.) Dave Karnes. I’m a conservative that has a record to prove it and now 14 years of political experience, so I’m going to run on that.”