There are 25 legislative seats up for election this year in Nebraska’s unicameral legislature. Fifteen incumbents (5 Democrats and 10 Republicans) are not running for re-election. This is the highest retirement rate since 2014, when 17 incumbents (8 Democrats, 8 Republicans, and one independent) retired. The average number of retirements each year from 2010 to 2022 was 10.
Nebraska legislators are limited to serving two four-year terms. Fourteen of the 15 retiring incumbents are term-limited. The other, Fred Meyer (R-41), was appointed to fill a vacancy in 2023 but said he would not seek a full term. Two other retiring incumbents, Carol Blood (D-3) and Tony Vargas (D-7), are running for Congress.
Elections for Nebraska’s legislature are officially nonpartisan, and the candidates do not run with party labels. However, almost all legislators are affiliated with the state affiliate of either the Democratic or the Republican Party. Both parties explicitly endorse candidates for legislative seats. Ballotpedia collects information from numerous sources and cross-matches the information for each candidate to determine his or her political affiliation.
Nebraska has been a Republican trifecta since 1999. Republicans won the governorship in the 1998 election and have held a majority in the legislature.
Nebraska’s state legislative primaries are scheduled for May 14.
