Ricketts wins re-election to Nebraska Senate seat

Pete Ricketts won re-election to the U.S. Senate from Nebraska, defeating independent challenger Dan Osborn and securing his first full six-year term. The Associated Press declared Ricketts the winner at 3:27 a.m. EST, while another report projected his victory. The reports did not provide final vote totals. Ricketts, a Republican and former Nebraska governor, was appointed to the Senate in 2023 to replace Ben Sasse, then won a 2024 special election for the remainder of the term. The 2026 contest was his first bid for a full term. Osborn, an industrial mechanic and military veteran, also ran a competitive but unsuccessful Senate campaign in 2024, challenging Republican Sen. Deb Fischer. The race drew substantial spending and national political attention. Club for Growth PAC said its affiliated Win It Back PAC invested more than $2 million in the contest, and that its members contributed $75,306 directly to Ricketts’s campaign. The organization said its advertising focused on Osborn’s positions on Social Security benefits and immigration. Those spending figures and characterizations came from the PAC. In October, the Senate Leadership Fund announced an additional $8 million for...