CAPITAL CASH: Two Omaha Megadonors Account for Majority of Money Raised by Statewide Democratic Candidates

by John Gage

(Photo courtesy of the Nebraska Capitol Commission)

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.

OMAHA – Two Omaha megadonors are responsible for the majority of money that Democratic candidates for constitutional offices have raised this year. Barbara Weitz and Dianne Lozier have accounted for nearly half a million in contributions between the Lynne Walz for Nebraska governor’s campaign and Jocelyn Brasher’s campaign for attorney general, according to filings with the Nebraska Accountability and Disclosure Commission (NADC).

Weitz, a current University of Nebraska regent, has donated $150,000 to the Walz campaign while Lozier has donated $255,000 this year. Combined their donations total well over half of the nearly $700,000 Walz has raised in 2026.

In the attorney general’s race, Walz has contributed $50,000 to Brasher’s campaign while Lozier has donated $10,000, accounting for over half of the individual contributions to the campaign. Neither the secretary of state nor treasurer races brought in a significant amount of Democratic money, and State Auditor Mike Foley is running unopposed this cycle.

In total, Democratic candidates running for constitutional office have raised around $850,000 in statewide races with Weitz and Lozier’s contributions accounting for $465,000 or 55% of the total money raised.

The number does not include several significant third-party donations, whose donors are not reported to the NADC. In addition to the individual contributions, Lozier contributed $50,000 to Democracy Nebraska this cycle which has, in turn, donated an additional $25,400 to Brasher’s campaign.

Weitz-Connected PACs Playing Big in Legislative Races

While Weitz has made several direct contributions to statewide Democratic candidates, two large third-party groups, Nebraska Donor Alliance and Democracy Nebraska, are also connected to the Weitz family.

The Nebraska Donor Alliance is registered with the IRS as 501(c)(4) tax exempt nonprofit, which means their donors are private. Their filings, however, list Weitz’s daughter, Katie Weitz, as the chair of their board. The group’s executive director is former State Sen. Adam Morfeld, who ran the center-left educational group Civic Nebraska until 2024.

The group’s last public disclosure showed it raised $3 million in 2024. This year, they have already funneled $750,000 to another PAC, Democracy Nebraska, and are the only donor this year to that group.

Democracy Nebraska, in turn, has given contributions of $25,000 and $35,000 to Democratic legislative candidates in key battleground races. So far, the group has allocated a total of $265,000 in nine different state legislative races accounting for the majority of the Democratic edge in fundraising against Republican legislative candidates this year.

NADC filings show that the Nebraska Donor Alliance also contributed $500,000 to the Respect Nebraska Voters ballot initiative in January, an initiative that seeks to make it more difficult for Nebraska lawmakers to modify ballot initiatives after they have passed. The only other donation near that size was a $500,000 direct contribution from Barbara Weitz.

In February, Weitz told The Plains Sentinel that her donation was a result of her frustration with the current direction of politics. “My gift was entirely motivated by my discouragement with some politics,” she said. “We need leaders who focus on making life and the future better for everyone. How do we recapture a sense of community, caring for our neighbors, electing people who value liberty and justice for all.”

CD-2 Democratic Dark Money Dustup

The Weitz family’s use of PAC money came under scrutiny from Democrats last month after State Sen. John Cavanaugh, who is running to be the Democratic nominee in the second congressional district, sent Katie Weitz and her husband, Tim Wilson, a letter complaining about their support for Denise Powell through the Fight for Nebraska PAC.

“I’m saddened and surprised that you would create a Super PAC that uses dark money to attack me with negative ads which try to scare Democratic voters with misleading accusations,” Cavanaugh said in the letter. “Your super PAC has deployed nearly one million dollars to attempt to smear and tear down the strongest Democratic candidate in this race.”

Cavanaugh went on to call the Weitz’s attacks from the PAC “a shocking betrayal” and that they were “meant to stoke fear and division.” FEC filings show the PAC has spent over a million dollars in the CD-2 race with the majority of the spending going towards attacks on Cavanaugh.

In his letter, he hinted that Weitz and Wilson might be coordinating with the Powell campaign, demanding they “release all of the communication” they have had between the Powell campaign, the PAC, and any groups or nonprofits associated with them.

The Powell campaign has been posting memos, ostensibly meant for PACs to see in an obscure portion of her campaign website. Following timestamped memo updates, Fight for Nebraska has quickly pivoted their messaging based on the Powell campaign’s recommendations.

Cavanaugh ended his letter to Weitz and Wilson, stating, “We cannot have a government that truly represents working people when our campaigns are flooded with secret money from the very wealthy and powerful.”

— John Gage is the Executive Editor of The Plains Sentinel.

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