General Discussion

When Ahlman is included, Backemeyer drops to 8 points behind.

Link to the poll:

https://242750075.fs1.hubspotusercontent-na2.net/hubfs/242750075/NE-01%20General%20Election%20-%20Toplines.pdf




New nonpartisan push in NE-01 as Austin Ahlman jumps into race

Ahlman says some of Chris Backemeyer’s State Department work was a factor in his running and that he preferred another Democrat

https://nebraskaexaminer.com/2026/05/15/new-nonpartisan-push-in-ne-01-as-austin-ahlman-jumps-into-race/

May 15, 2026

LINCOLN — A new nonpartisan is running in eastern Nebraska’s 1st Congressional District, and his entry could complicate the path for Democratic nominee Chris Backemeyer to test Republican U.S. Rep. Mike Flood in a year when Democrats nationally expect to outperform the norm.

Austin Ahlman, a progressive journalist, announced his candidacy Thursday with a story in the Lincoln Journal Star and a campaign video on social media that garnered significant attention, particularly among the online left.

Ahlman covered part of Nebraska’s 2024 U.S. Senate race and an early part of the 2026 U.S. House race in the Omaha-based 2nd District for The American Prospect. State Sen. Megan Hunt of Omaha, a nonpartisan progressive who typically sides with Democrats but left the party in 2023, tweeted about his bid. “This is a campaign in Nebraska that I’m really excited about,” Hunt wrote on X.

In an interview with the Examiner, Ahlman described his bid as “personal” because he grew up in Norfolk, Nebraska, like Flood. He said he is running because “somebody has to stand up and do something about what’s going on in this country.” He said he moved back to Nebraska last fall from D.C. to help with his father’s cancer and to help his family’s finances. He said his campaign is focused on affordability.

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