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LINCOLN — Nonpartisan candidate for Nebraska’s 1st Congressional District, Austin Ahlman, says he has enough signatures to be on the November ballot, setting up a likely four-way race with Democratic nominee Chris Backemeyer, Republican incumbent U.S. Rep. Mike Flood, and Libertarian Nik Sandman.
The Ahlman campaign said it has collected about 2,150 signatures and will continue collecting them as a cushion. They plan to submit their signatures to the Secretary of State at the end of the month, the deadline to turn in signatures is Aug. 3. According to the Secretary of State’s office, a candidate who wants a November ballot line for the U.S. House race in Nebraska needs signatures from “at least 20% of registered voters in the applicable district who voted for President in 2024” — or 2,000 in Ahlman’s case.
Ahlman, a journalist, said in a statement that he has “seen an unprecedented outpouring of support for a truly independent House campaign in the few short weeks since we launched.”
“Hundreds of Nebraskans have chipped in, and dozens more have contributed their time, expertise, and energy…Together, we’re showing that we’re in this to win this,” Ahlman said.
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Ahlman jumped into the race shortly after the state’s primary election in May. He has been endorsed by Nebraska Democratic U.S. Senate nominee Cindy Burbank over Backemeyer. Nebraska Democrats have criticized Ahlman for running, accusing him of being a spoiler by running to split the vote with Backemeyer.
The 1st District comprises 12 counties, including Lancaster County, which is home to heavily Democratic Lincoln, a city whose blue voters are often drowned out by the region’s more conservative smaller cities and rural areas.
Flood has won his past two U.S. House elections by 20 and 16 percentage points, respectively.
Analysts consider the 1st District seat safely Republican, including the nonpartisan Center for Politics, The Cook Political Report and Inside Elections.
Flood’s campaign declined to comment Thursday on Ahlman’s signature collection efforts.
The general election is Nov 3.
