# 2022 Nebraska gubernatorial election

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The 2022 Nebraska gubernatorial election took place on November 8, 2022, to elect the next governor of Nebraska. Incumbent Republican governor Pete Ricketts was term-limited and unable to seek a third term. In the general election, Republican Jim Pillen won the gubernatorial election by a 23-point margin.
Nebraska's primary elections were held on May 10. Pillen, the former University of Nebraska Board of Regents chair, won the Republican nomination, while state senator Carol Blood won the Democratic nomination.
The race took on increased importance in October 2022, when U.S. senator Ben Sasse announced he would resign and Ricketts said he would allow the winner of the gubernatorial election to appoint Sasse's replacement. In the end, Pillen appointed Ricketts to Sasse's seat.

## Republican primary
### Candidates
#### Nominated

* Jim Pillen, member and former chair of the University of Nebraska Board of Regents
** Running mate: Joe Kelly, former U.S. Attorney for the District of Nebraska

#### Eliminated in primary

* Donna Carpenter, contractor
* Michael Connely, educational advisor, quality assurance director, small-scale agribusiness, USMC veteran
* Charles Herbster, agribusiness executive and candidate for governor in 2014
* Brett Lindstrom, financial advisor, state senator and candidate for Nebraska's 2nd congressional district in 2012
** Running mate: Dave Rippe, real estate broker and former director of the Nebraska Department of Economic Development
* Lela McNinch
* Breland Ridenour, information technology manager
* Theresa Thibodeau, former state senator and former chair of the Douglas County Republican Party
** Running mate: Trent Loos, agriculture advocate and podcast host

#### Declined

* Don Bacon, U.S. representative for Nebraska's 2nd congressional district (successfully ran for re-election)
* Deb Fischer, U.S. senator
* Mike Flood, state senator, former Speaker of the Nebraska Legislature, and candidate for governor in 2014
* Mike Foley, Lieutenant Governor of Nebraska, former Nebraska State Auditor, and candidate for governor in 2014 (successfully ran for State Auditor; endorsed Herbster)
* Jeff Fortenberry, former U.S. representative for Nebraska's 1st congressional district
* Dave Heineman, former governor
* Mike Hilgers, Speaker of the Nebraska Legislature (successfully ran for Attorney General)
* Greg Ibach, former U.S. Under Secretary of Agriculture for Marketing and Regulatory Programs and former Nebraska Director of Agriculture
* Dave Nabity, financial adviser, talk show host, and candidate for governor in 2006
* Bryan Slone, president of the Nebraska Chamber of Commerce and candidate for governor in 2014
* Adrian Smith, U.S. representative for Nebraska's 3rd congressional district (successfully ran for re-election)
* John Stinner, state senator
* Jean Stothert, Mayor of Omaha (endorsed Lindstrom)

### Endorsements

U.S. Executive Branch officials
* Hal Daub, former chair of the Social Security Advisory Board (2002–2006), former mayor of Omaha (1995–2001), and former U.S. representative for Nebraska's 2nd congressional district (1981–1989)
* Donald Trump, 45th president of the United States (2017–2021)
Statewide officials
* Mike Foley, Lieutenant Governor of Nebraska (2015–present), former Nebraska State Auditor (2007–2015), and candidate for governor in 2014
* Kristi Noem, Governor of South Dakota (2019–present) and former U.S. representative for South Dakota's at-large congressional district (2011–2019)
State legislators
* Tom Brewer, state senator from the 43rd district (2017–present)
* Tom Briese, state senator from the 41st district (2017–2023)
* Steve Halloran, state senator from the 33rd district (2017–present)
Organizations
* American Conservative Union
U.S. representatives
* Brad Ashford, former U.S. representative for Nebraska's 2nd congressional district (2015–2017) (Democratic; Deceased; Republican primary only; co-endorsed with Blood)
State legislators
* Bob Krist, former state senator from the 10th district (2009–2019) and Democratic nominee for governor in 2018
Local officials
* Jean Stothert, Mayor of Omaha (2013–present)
Organizations
* Nebraska AFL–CIO (Republican primary only; co-endorsed with Blood)
U.S. representatives
* Tom Osborne, former U.S. representative for Nebraska's 3rd congressional district (2001–2007)
Statewide officials
* Jon Bruning, former Nebraska Attorney General (2003–2015)
* Kay A. Orr, former governor of Nebraska (1987–1991)
* Doug Peterson, Nebraska Attorney General (2015–2023)
* Pete Ricketts, Governor of Nebraska (2015–2023)
State legislators
* Dan Hughes, state senator from the 44th district (2015–2023)
* Lou Ann Linehan, state senator from the 39th district (2017–present)
Local officials
* Don Kleine, Douglas County District Attorney (2007–present)
* Terry Wagner, Lancaster County Sheriff
Organizations
* Americans for Prosperity
* Nebraska Farm Bureau

### Polling

Graphical summary
| Poll source | Date(s) administered | Sample size | Margin of error | Charles Herbster | Brett Lindstrom | Jim Pillen | Theresa Thibodeau | Other | Undecided |
| WPA Intelligence (R) | April 30 – May 2, 2022 | 500 (LV) | ± 4.4% | 26% | 16% | 31% | – | 8% | 19% |
| WPA Intelligence (R) | April 26–28, 2022 | 505 (LV) | ± 4.4% | 23% | 20% | 24% | 7% | 2% | 24% |
| Data Targeting (R) | April 19–20, 2022 | 858 (LV) | ± 4.9% | 26% | 28% | 24% | 6% | – | 16% |
| 3D Strategic Research (R) | April 10–12, 2022 | 500 (LV) | ± 4.4% | 23% | 27% | 27% | 6% | 5% | 12% |
| Moore Information Group (R) | March 26–29, 2022 | 206 (LV) | ± 7.0% | 23% | 19% | 10% | 5% | 9% | 34% |
| KAConsulting LLC (R) | March 8–10, 2022 | 600 (LV) | ± 4.0% | 27% | 17% | 18% | 3% | – | 35% |
| 3D Strategic Research (R) | March 7–9, 2022 | 500 (LV) | ± 4.4% | 30% | 20% | 23% | 3% | 6% | 18% |
| Data Targeting (R) | February 8–11, 2022 | 1,168 (LV) | ± 2.9% | 27% | 21% | 26% | – | – | – |
| 3D Strategic Research (R) | September 2021 | – (LV) | – | 32% | 10% | 19% | – | 9% | 30% |

### Results

Pillen, Herbster, and Lindstrom all won their respective home counties – Pillen won Platte County with 66.3% of the vote, Herbster won Richardson County with 55.7% of the vote, and Lindstrom won Douglas County with 39.5% of the vote. Lindstrom won the Omaha metropolitan area and came close to winning Lancaster County, home to state capital Lincoln, losing to Pillen by about 2.1%. Pillen and Herbster won parts of more rural Nebraska.
While Herbster won most of the Sandhills region, Pillen won most of northeastern Nebraska and counties along the I-80 corridor.
Republican primary results :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % |
| | Republican | Jim Pillen | 91,555 | 33.88% |
| | Republican | Charles Herbster | 80,771 | 29.91% |
| | Republican | Brett Lindstrom | 70,554 | 26.14% |
| | Republican | Theresa Thibodeau | 16,432 | 6.07% |
| | Republican | Breland Ridenour | 4,685 | 1.73% |
| | Republican | Michael Connely | 2,838 | 1.05% |
| | Republican | Donna Nicole Carpenter | 1,536 | 0.57% |
| | Republican | Lela McNinch | 1,192 | 0.44% |
| | Republican | Troy Wentz | 708 | 0.26% |
| Total votes | Total votes | Total votes | 270,271 | 100.00% |

## Democratic primary
### Candidates
#### Nominated

* Carol Blood, state senator
** Running mate: Al Davis, former state senator

#### Eliminated in primary

* Roy A. Harris

#### Withdrew

* Bob Krist, former state senator and nominee for governor in 2018 (endorsed Lindstrom)

#### Declined

* Sara Howard, member of the Omaha Public Power District board and former state senator
* Steve Lathrop, state senator
* Alisha Shelton, behavioral health clinical supervisor and candidate for U.S. Senate in 2020 (unsuccessfully ran for U.S. House)
* Tony Vargas, state senator (unsuccessfully ran for U.S. House)

### Endorsements

U.S. representatives
* Brad Ashford, former U.S. representative for Nebraska's 2nd congressional district (2015–2017) (Democratic primary only; deceased; co-endorsed with Lindstrom)
Organizations
* Nebraska AFL–CIO (Democratic primary only; co-endorsed with Lindstrom)
* Nebraska Democratic Party
* Nebraska Sierra Club

### Results

Democratic primary results :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % |
| | Democratic | Carol Blood | 88,859 | 88.75% |
| | Democratic | Roy A. Harris | 11,267 | 11.25% |
| Total votes | Total votes | Total votes | 100,126 | 100.00% |

## Libertarian primary
### Candidates
#### Declared

* Scott Zimmerman, businessman, comedian, founder of Z-Trak Productions and nominee for lieutenant governor in 2014
** Running mate: Jason Blumenthal

### Results

Libertarian primary results :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % |
| | Libertarian | Scott Zimmerman | 1,595 | 100.00% |
| Total votes | Total votes | Total votes | 1,595 | 100.00% |

## General election
### Predictions

| Source | Ranking | As of |
| The Cook Political Report | Solid R | March 4, 2022 |
| Inside Elections | Solid R | March 4, 2022 |
| Sabato's Crystal Ball | Safe R | January 26, 2022 |
| Politico | Solid R | April 1, 2022 |
| RCP | Safe R | January 10, 2022 |
| Fox News | Solid R | May 12, 2022 |
| 538 | Solid R | June 30, 2022 |
| Elections Daily | Safe R | November 7, 2022 |

### Post-primary endorsements

Statewide officials
* Glenn Youngkin, Governor of Virginia (2022–present)
State legislators
* Brett Lindstrom, state senator from the 18th district (2015–2023), candidate for Nebraska's 2nd congressional district in 2012 and candidate for governor in 2022
Organizations
* Americans for Prosperity
* Nebraska Farm Bureau
Organizations
* National Education Association
* National Women's Political Caucus
Newspapers
* Lincoln Journal Star
* Omaha World-Herald

### Polling

| Poll source | Date(s) administered | Sample size | Margin of error | Jim Pillen (R) | Carol Blood (D) | Other | Undecided |
| Data Targeting (R) | September 26–28, 2022 | 1,340 (LV) | ± 2.7% | 48% | 41% | – | 11% |

### Results

* Democratic — +7.5-10%
* Democratic — +5-7.5%
* Democratic — +2.5-5%
* Democratic — +0-2.5%
* Republican — +0-2.5%
* Republican — +2.5-5%
* Republican — +5-7.5%
* Republican — +7.5-10%
* Republican — +10-12.5%
* Republican — +12.5-15%
* Republican — +>15%
* Democratic — +7.5-10%
* Democratic — +5-7.5%
* Democratic — +2.5-5%
* Democratic — +0-2.5%
* Republican — +0-2.5%
* Republican — +2.5-5%
* Republican — +5-7.5%
* Republican — +7.5-10%
* Republican — +10-12.5%
* Republican — +12.5-15%
* Republican — +>15%
2022 Nebraska gubernatorial election :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Republican | Jim PillenJoe Kelly | 398,334 | 59.22% | +0.22% |
| | Democratic | Carol BloodAl Davis | 242,006 | 35.98% | −5.02% |
| | Libertarian | Scott ZimmermanJason Blumenthal | 26,455 | 3.93% | — |
| | Write-in | Write-in | 5,798 | 0.86% | — |
| Total votes | Total votes | Total votes | 672,593 | 100.00% | |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 682,716 | 54.93% | |
| Registered electors | Registered electors | Registered electors | 1,242,930 | | |
| | Republican hold | Republican hold | Republican hold | Republican hold | Republican hold |

#### By congressional district

Pillen won all 3 congressional districts.
| District | Pillen | Blood | Representative |
| 1st | 55.77% | 40.57% | Mike Flood |
| 2nd | 48.21% | 48.06% | Don Bacon |
| 3rd | 75.04% | 20.45% | Adrian Smith |