Independent U.S. Senate candidate Dan Osborn has ruled out caucusing with Republicans, privately indicating that he would be willing to caucus with Democrats if elected, according to an audio recording obtained by The Plains Sentinel from a Nebraska town hall.
Audio from the August 18, 2025, town hall in La Vista shows Osborn telling attendees that if his approach as an independent failed, there was only one party he would caucus with.
“If what I’m trying to do isn’t working, there’s only one party I would caucus with,” Osborn said.
Asked by an audience member to clarify which party that would be, Osborn responded,
“Not [Republican] Pete Ricketts’s party,” prompting cheers from the crowd.
Osborn’s town hall remarks, as well as his fundraising ties and prior public statements, raise questions about whether he has been fully transparent with voters about how he would align if elected.
The town hall remarks stand in stark contrast to Osborn’s repeated public pledges that he would not caucus with either major party if elected.
In an interview just three weeks before his town hall, Osborn told the Nebraska Examiner that he would maintain his independence from the Democratic Party and would not caucus with either party in the Senate. WJAG Radio reported a similar pledge in a January 2026 interview, and The New York Times cited the same position in a July 2025 feature story.
This week, The Plains Sentinel asked Osborn if he would caucus with Democrats, and he repeated that he was not going to caucus with either party.
“There's no rules in Congress that says you have to caucus, right?” he said. “Right now, the two-party system seems to be in a doom loop. People are disenfranchised with it. They're frustrated with it. So I'm going to challenge the system. And I'm not going to caucus with either party. I'm going to caucus with the people of Nebraska.”
The Ricketts campaign responded to the audio, saying it showed Osborn is a “liberal Democrat.”
“Would-be Schumer stooge Dan Osborn was caught admitting what he’s been hiding from Nebraskans for two years: he’s a liberal Democrat,” said Will Coup, a Ricketts campaign spokesman. “Osborn would side with Washington Democrats to hike taxes, reopen our borders, and let men compete in girls’ sports. Fake Dan Osborn’s act won’t fool Nebraskans.”
Bernie Sanders of Vermont and Angus King of Maine are currently the only two Independent U.S. Senators, and both caucus with the Democratic Party.
Despite his public statements, Osborn’s campaign has extensive ties to Democratic-aligned candidates, committees, fundraising, and political infrastructure.
Federal Election Commission records show that Osborn accepted a $57,800 contribution from the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee, making it the largest single donor to his 2024 campaign.
Senate Majority PAC, the main super PAC associated with Chuck Schumer and Senate Democrats, contributed $3.85 million to Osborn’s 2024 Senate campaign.
Campaign finance reports from this cycle also show Osborn has already accepted contributions from Democratic Senator Elizabeth Warren’s campaign.
Osborn also raises money through ActBlue, the Democratic Party’s primary online fundraising platform, which made an exception to its usual candidate requirements to allow his campaign access despite his independent label.
His campaign website features the ActBlue donation link right below the word “Independent” – even though the platform is used almost exclusively by Democratic politicians.
The Plains Sentinel asked Osborn earlier this week about the support he has gotten from outside PACs, including one funded, in part, by tech billionaire Reid Hoffman.
“That PAC is separate from the candidate. That’s the problem with politics, right? You have an independent expenditure that, by FEC rules, you can’t coordinate with. I’ve stepped away from that PAC as a candidate. I can’t solicit to it. All I can do is basically know about it,” Osborn said.
The Plains Sentinel has reached out to both the Osborn campaign for comment on the audio.
Matt Cover is a freelance reporter for The Plains Sentinel and a former reporter for CNS News.
Editor’s Note: This story has been updated to include a comment from the Ricketts campaign.
Let’s elect someone who is truly independent and will work for the people of Nebraska… And will not always be in lock step with the mistakes that Donald Trump is making every day.
Osborne has said if he wins, he will caucus with neither party… I believe that’s the best position at this point both for Nebraska and for the nation.
I voted for Donald Trump in 16 and 20… But I became disgusted with him when I saw him attempting to overthrow the government of the United States after he lost an election.
I left the Republican party and became an Independent.
In 2024 I didn’t vote in the presidential election
This past term of Trump has been an eye-opener with him using his office for his own personal and family enrichment.
Trump stumbles into war without taking advice from serious people who know the situation.
“Who knew… Strait of Hormuz? ..”.
🤦♂️
Clearly Trump has no idea about foreign policy and trade policy other than following his own ego.
We’ve never had a President before that wants to put his name on everything as if he’s the King.
I will vote for Dan Osborne.
We need someone like Osborne to address the concerns of working class people, and also to be a sensible voice in Washington, not beholden to any political party.
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He claims to support tariffs and border security, the progressive base does not. Add to the name confusion with prior candidates Shane Osborne and Tom Osborne, you can tell he has many shells in his shell game.