How did Denise Powell beat an Omaha dynasty in NE-02? (Blue Dot)

[Omaha Steve]

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First-time candidate led the congressional race in fundraising and in outside money spent on her behalf, defeated two better-known foes

By: Juan Salinas II - May 20, 2026 1:20 pm Updated 6:02 pm

OMAHA — Business and nonprofit consultant Denise Powell beat two elected officials who had been on Omaha-area ballots for years, surviving a heated, six-person primary that Democratic voters in Nebraska’s 2nd Congressional District hadn’t seen in years.

Powell won partly because her campaign and outside groups aligned with her outraised and outspent her competitors on television, digital, direct mail and handbill advertising.

Those ads introduced her as a “fighter” and stressed the potential risk to Democratic priorities in the statehouse of electing her top competitor, the scion of a local political dynasty, State Sen. John Cavanaugh, because Republican Gov. Jim Pillen would pick his replacement. They also helped her pass Douglas County District Court Clerk Crystal Rhoades, a former member of the Nebraska Public Service Commission.

Powell, according to the latest fundraising numbers before the primary, raised $1.6 million. Cavanaugh raised $1.1 million. Rhoades raised $172,768. Multiple PACs combined to spend more than $5 million in the NE-02 primary, mostly supporting Powell or opposing Cavanaugh, according to Nebraska Public Media News.

FULL story at link above.


Denise Powell prepares for a interview in Omaha on April 11, 2026. (Juan Salinas II/Nebraska Examiner)

[Omaha Steve]

1. Kick