CAPITAL CASH: Nonpartisan Regent Candidate Brought in Millions from Democratic Consulting
by Matt Johnson
Capital Cash is a series by The Plains Sentinel investigating the intersection of money, influence, and politics in Nebraska, bringing readers stories on some of the most powerful figures and biggest donors in our state who have typically not seen the type of scrutiny from other outlets.
LINCOLN – Brent Comstock is running for District 1 of the University of Nebraska Board of Regents. The 30-year-old Nebraska native touts his entrepreneurship, business acumen, and Independent party registration in his bid to replace Republican Tim Clare, who elected not to run again.
Comstock boasts an impressive list of endorsements from both parties, including Republicans Coach Tom Osborne, former State Sen. Matt Williams, and former University of Nebraska Regent Bob Phares. Democratic endorsements include Lincoln Mayor Leiron Gaylor Baird, University of Nebraska Regent Barb Weitz, former State Senator and current Democratic gubernatorial candidate Lynne Walz, and former Nebraska Governors Ben Nelson and Bob Kerrey.
Since his launch in June, Comstock has been pitching District 1 voters on his nonpartisan status and that he will preserve the legacy of his Republican predecessor. In contrast, campaign filings show Comstock’s consulting firm almost exclusively worked with Democratic candidates and causes.
Democrats Paid Comstock’s Firm Millions
Comstock has made his name in Nebraska politics through his consulting business, BCom Solutions LLC, which he founded when he was 19. In 2024, Forbes magazine named Comstock one of its 30 under 30 recipients. Comstock told Forbes that his company has helped raise over $100 million for its clients while also earning more than $10 million annually.
Records show that the bulk of BCom’s political work has been with top state and national Democratic candidates and groups.
During the 2024 election, BCom brought in over $235,000 from California Democratic Congressman Eric Swalwell’s campaign, $280,000 from Virginia Democratic Congressman Gerry Connolly, over $200,000 from the Blue Dog PAC that helps elect Democrats nationally, and nearly $50,000 from the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee.
Nationally, BCom reported nearly $3 million in payments from Democratic candidates and causes during the 2024 cycle, and the firm consulted for around 1 in 10 of the sitting Democratic congressional representatives.
Among the firm’s Nebraska clients was the Don’t Legislate Hate PAC, started by state senators Machaela Cavanaugh, Megan Hunt, and John Fredrickson in 2023 to push back “anti-LGBTQ bills” nationwide, including the Let Them Grow Act (LB 574). Comstock’s firm received $92,000 from the PAC.
The Nebraska Democratic Party also paid BCom nearly $80,000 and has since endorsed his campaign for Regent. Filings with the Nebraska Accountability and Disclosure Commission show BCom made over $500,000 in payments from Democrats in Nebraska in the 2024 campaign cycle. They did not work with any Republican candidates or groups that cycle, according to federal and state filings.
Despite the partisan bent of his firm, Comstock still maintains his nonpartisan status.
Independent Label on the Rise
Claims of non-partisanship and political independence seem to be a trend among progressive candidates in a Republican-leaning state like Nebraska, with U.S. Senate candidate Dan Osborn being the most high-profile example in the state.
Comstock is running a similar campaign. He has filed as non-partisan, and at a recent meet and greet event in Lincoln, he espoused similar non-partisan idealism when speaking with The Plains Sentinel.
“When we think about former Republican regents and former Democrat regents that have backed our campaign, the thing that they all say is when they would walk into Varner Hall, they would check their party registration at the door,” Comstock said. “And I think that it’s really important that we do that.”
Despite running as an Independent, however, Comstock is still listed among the candidates on the Nebraska Democrats website, and the meet-and-greet event was promoted online as being hosted by the Nebraska Democratic Party.
When asked which Republican or conservative candidates or causes they worked with, Comstock also refused to comment.
“We don’t publicize our client list,” he said.
Public records show that since 2018, BCom Solutions has worked with a single Republican candidate committee: Dave Dodson of Wyoming, who ran an unsuccessful 2018 primary challenge to incumbent Sen. John Barrasso.
Comstock said as Regent, he’ll remain focused on issues that affect all Nebraskans, regardless of political ideology.
“I think everyone, people that align with the conservative ideology, people that align with the progressive ideology, people that are in the middle, all agree that we should have a really strong university,” Comstock said.
— Matt Johnson is a freelance reporter with The Plains Sentinel.
