Democrats See NE-01 Seat 'In Play,' as National Committee Looks to Invest
by Lewis Thune
(Picture credit Matt Johnson)
The Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee (DCCC) announced Wednesday morning that it was considering 12 new congressional races “in play,” including the race between GOP incumbent Mike Flood and Democrat challenger Chris Backemeyer for Nebraska’s 1st Congressional District.
Joining Flood’s seat as potentially in play was Colorado’s third and fourth – respectively held by Reps. Jeff Hurd and Lauren Boebert, and Rep. Victoria Spartz’s fifth Indiana seat, among others.
“We’re taking the fight deep into Trump territory because voters are fed up,” they said in the announcement posted on Twitter. Backemeyer’s campaign highlighted the news in a Facebook post, declaring that NE-01 was an official battleground district.
Inclusion on the list does not guarantee the DCCC will invest in those races, but raises the probability that they will.
Cook Political still lists the district as “Solid Republican,” leaning +6 in favor of the GOP.
“It would take a combination of high turnout in Lincoln and anemic turnout in the surrounding rural counties for Flood to have another competitive race,” they said.
Backemeyer, a longtime DC resident and State Department employee, moved back to Nebraska recently, stating he was “pushed out of government by Elon Musk and DOGE.” His campaign announcement video featured him questioning Flood in an August 2025 town hall. In the 2026 town cycle, he has since turned up to table outside Flood’s town halls.
Flood previously defeated former state senator and current candidate Patty Pansing Brooks by 16 in 2022 and current Omaha Public Power District candidate Carol Blood by 20 in 2024.
A spokesperson for the Flood campaign said that the Backemeyer campaign was struggling to consolidate support.
“It’s no surprise DC Democrats are rallying behind 20-year DC resident Chris Backemeyer — even as he struggles to win over Democrats back home in Nebraska. Partisan noise has never mattered to Congressman Flood, which is why he will keep listening to his district and delivering results.”
Initial polling from progressive polling firm Tavern Research showed Flood with a slight edge over Backemeyer. Austin Ahlman, a former DC journalist, had strongly attacked Backemeyer in an attempted Independent run to unite anti-Flood votes. Polling from Zenith Research, another progressive-aligned firm, showed Backemeyer trailing Flood 43-34 in a hypothetical three-way, in which then-candidate Austin Ahlman running as an Independent held 10 points.
“A Democrat has not won this seat in 60 years. Chris Backemeyer is not going to change that. Our poll shows that when voters hear his own message – about working on Middle East policy for both parties in the State Department – support actually *drops* by 5 points,” Ahlman said during his short Independent run for the seat.
Ahlman had reportedly garnered enough signatures to appear on the ballot before he abruptly dropped out, citing a return of his father’s cancer. He has not issued an endorsement in the race. Kalshi public predictions currently put Flood’s odds to win that seat at 87-11.
Backemeyer is further facing an immense fundraising gap. Between Flood for Congress and the Flood Victory Fund, Mike Flood’s campaign has raised over $3 million in support of his 2026 reelection bid, while Backemeyer’s Q2 total for the 2026 cycle was just under $600,000.
By contrast, NE-02 Democrat candidate Denise Powell has outraised her GOP opponent Brinker Harding by nearly double as of Q2.
Powell’s race is listed on the DCCC’s “in play” tab as well as their “Red to Blue” campaign. The addition of NE-01 to “in play” and its accompanying addition to DCCC fundraising efforts could help narrow the contest in Backemeyer’s favor.
— Lewis Thune is a writing fellow with The Plains Sentinel.