Denise Powell celebrates primary victory; Douglas County still tallying votes

Only 89% of the vote has been counted in Douglas County.

Read the full article on KETV 7

Nebraskans wait for Douglas County to drop the remaining primary election results to see who will be the Democratic nominee for Congressional District 2.Candidate Denise Powell is not waiting for Friday’s results.The Associated Press named her the winner on Wednesday. PREVIOUS COVERAGE: AP calls Democratic nomination in Nebraska’s 2nd Congressional District for Denise PowellPowell is already preparing for November and the race against the Republican nominee, Brinker Harding.In a news conference Thursday, Powell said she was at her son’s baseball game when she got the AP news alert.“We’re just so incredibly proud of this incredible community of the support that we’ve received in this race,” Powell said.It does not appear that John Cavanaugh plans to concede.In a statement to KETV, his team said, “There are 5,032 more Douglas County Democratic ballots to be counted on Friday morning – we want to ensure every vote is counted.”ADDITIONAL COVERAGE: 2026 primary election results: Voters deciding nominees for Nebraska’s congressional districts“If I were Senator Cavanaugh, I’d want the same thing,” Powell said. “So, total respect and give them their space. And we’re excited to see what happens tomorrow.”Only 89% of the vote has been counted in Douglas County. The election commission still has around 9,712 total mail-in and drop box ballots left to count, which will be released Friday.Powell said she is already looking ahead to the general election.“I think it’s clear that this general is going to be real feisty, too,” she said.PREVIOUS COVERAGE: Congressional District 2 race still too close to call for Democratic nomineeHarding ran unopposed and advanced to November.Harding said it does not matter which Democratic candidate is nominated. “We know that we have a good message. We know that we have a winning strategy, and we know that we’ll be well-received by the voters of the district,” Harding said.Both candidates said they want to represent everyone in the district regardless of political party.“What I have is experience working across the aisle. What I have is experience leading on issues and finding common ground on issues that are important to people,” Powell said.Harding said that although he’s a Conservative, if he were elected, he wants to hear from all constituents.“I think people know who I am. They know that I’m a very conservative person. But they also know I’m willing to sit down and listen to you. And that’s what I think this district really wants and deserves, is someone who’s going to be — who will listen to you and be responsive,” Harding said.The Douglas County Election Commission said Friday will be the last big batch of results, then next Friday there will be another drop of results from the provisional ballots.We asked Cavanaugh’s campaign team for an interview, but it said he was not available.Make sure you can always see the latest news, weather, sports and more from KETV NewsWatch 7 on Google search.NAVIGATE: Home | Weather | Local News | National | Sports | Newscasts on demand |

OMAHA, Neb. —

Nebraskans wait for Douglas County to drop the remaining primary election results to see who will be the Democratic nominee for Congressional District 2.

Candidate Denise Powell is not waiting for Friday’s results.

The Associated Press named her the winner on Wednesday.

PREVIOUS COVERAGE: AP calls Democratic nomination in Nebraska’s 2nd Congressional District for Denise Powell

Powell is already preparing for November and the race against the Republican nominee, Brinker Harding.

In a news conference Thursday, Powell said she was at her son’s baseball game when she got the AP news alert.

“We’re just so incredibly proud of this incredible community of the support that we’ve received in this race,” Powell said.

It does not appear that John Cavanaugh plans to concede.

In a statement to KETV, his team said, “There are 5,032 more Douglas County Democratic ballots to be counted on Friday morning – we want to ensure every vote is counted.”

ADDITIONAL COVERAGE: 2026 primary election results: Voters deciding nominees for Nebraska’s congressional districts

“If I were [state] Senator Cavanaugh, I’d want the same thing,” Powell said. “So, total respect and give them their space. And we’re excited to see what happens tomorrow.”

Only 89% of the vote has been counted in Douglas County.

The election commission still has around 9,712 total mail-in and drop box ballots left to count, which will be released Friday.

Powell said she is already looking ahead to the general election.

“I think it’s clear that this general is going to be real feisty, too,” she said.

PREVIOUS COVERAGE: Congressional District 2 race still too close to call for Democratic nominee

Harding ran unopposed and advanced to November.

Harding said it does not matter which Democratic candidate is nominated.

“We know that we have a good message. We know that we have a winning strategy, and we know that we’ll be well-received by the voters of the district,” Harding said.

Both candidates said they want to represent everyone in the district regardless of political party.

“What I have is experience working across the aisle. What I have is experience leading on issues and finding common ground on issues that are important to people,” Powell said.

Harding said that although he’s a Conservative, if he were elected, he wants to hear from all constituents.

“I think people know who I am. They know that I’m a very conservative person. But they also know I’m willing to sit down and listen to you. And that’s what I think this district really wants and deserves, is someone who’s going to be — who will listen to you and be responsive,” Harding said.

The Douglas County Election Commission said Friday will be the last big batch of results, then next Friday there will be another drop of results from the provisional ballots.

We asked Cavanaugh’s campaign team for an interview, but it said he was not available.

Make sure you can always see the latest news, weather, sports and more from KETV NewsWatch 7 on Google search.