Democrats Target District 18 for Flip as Republican Candidates Spar

by Matt Johnson

(Picture credit Matt Johnson)

OMAHA — With a Republican supermajority on the table in the Nebraska Legislature, Democrats are targeting seats to flip in the 2026 election. One of the top targets is the District 18 seat in Bennington, a seat currently held by Republican Christy Armendariz, who is not seeking reelection.

Three candidates are currently running to succeed Armendariz for the seat: Taylor Royal and Derek Schwartz, both Republicans, and Jess Goldoni, a Democrat.

Dollars Flow to Democratic Challenger

While Armendariz won her seat in District 18 by 12.4% in 2022, Donald Trump won the district by only 1.7% in 2024. Democrats now clearly see the district as ready to flip—and money from the left targeting the seat is pouring in.

Goldoni, co-founder of AI education firm Nebraska AI, has raised over $106,000 for her campaign, according to filings with the NADC. Labor union PACs like the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers and Way Back PAC lead the way, along with progressive groups like Democracy Nebraska.

Taylor Royal, a CPA and partner at Royal Wealth Partners, challenged Jean Stothert for Omaha Mayor in 2017 and then ran for Nebraska State Treasurer in 2018. His campaign raised over $70,000 with contributions coming from several Republican-aligned PACs and former campaign committees, including Brinker Harding for City Council, Don Bacon for Congress, Jean Stothert for Mayor, and Julia Palzer for State Legislature. His campaign has piled up over 30 endorsements.

The apparent underdog in the campaign is Derek Schwartz, a self-described “farm kid” and police officer in La Vista, having raised just over $18,600, made up almost entirely of smaller individual contributions. His list of endorsements leans heavily on allies in law enforcement, including Douglas County Sheriff Aaron Hanson, Sarpy County Sheriff Greg London, Bennington Police Chief Andy Hilscher, and related fraternal organizations.

Taylor, Schwartz Spar Over Trump, Taxes

While Schwartz’s campaign seems to be trailing in fundraising, he was the target of a mailer sent out by the Taylor Royal campaign this month. The campaign placed desaturated photos of Goldoni and Schwartz together, with criticisms of Schwartz including “Failed to vote for President Trump in the 2016 Election,” “No Real Plan for Property Tax Reform,” and “Prioritizes western Nebraska over Omaha Families.”

The Plains Sentinel spoke with Schwartz about the mailer. Schwartz said that he did, in fact, vote for Trump in 2016, going so far as to attend a county watch party in Des Moines on election night.

As for property taxes, Schwartz said, “This is going to be a multi-pronged approach, where we need to obviously cut spending and also increase economic development and growth, where we can increase our revenue while also decreasing our spending.”

And for prioritizing western Nebraska over Omaha families, Schwartz said, “My job is going to be to listen to the constituents of 18 and do what’s best for them and what’s right by them, but obviously our decisions impact the entire state. Let’s not forget that we do have ag land in District 18. It is not 100% urban, so we do need to stand up for those voices as well.”

Schwartz sent out a press release last week responding to the mailer, making a blue-collar, white-collar distinction between him and his Republican opponent.

“I knew the attack ads would come, especially when my opponent has lost twice before after running for office on his dad’s money,” the release stated. “While he was working for his dad’s wealth management company, I was working in Iowa, building a small business from the ground up.”

The Plains Sentinel approached Royal, who had not seen the press release, at a candidate forum in Bennington on Saturday for his response.

“I’m kind of hearing it on the fly in that regard,” Royal said. “I believe that I have the right skill set and the background to actually execute and be legislative-ready on day one to solve the challenges that we have—which would be with the budget, which would be property taxes—but just like the people across this community, we as a family are feeling the pressure of our antiquated tax system today and would work hard no matter what our backgrounds are to serve people with excellence.”

Goldoni Leans Left, Plays for the Middle

At the candidate forum in Bennington, Goldoni positioned herself as a moderate with a focus on “affordability,” though her stances on issues were decidedly to the left of her Republican opponents.

Goldoni opposes school choice, stating that “public funding should go towards public schools,” suggesting that if parents are unhappy with the public school they’ve been assigned, they should pay out of pocket for a private school or pick up and move.

“My mom made a choice. As a single mom, she moved us into an apartment in the district, so that I could go to District 66. That was the choice that she made,” Goldoni said. “Other parents are more financially able to choose which schools their kids are able to go to and make that investment. My husband went to Mary Our Queen and went to Skutt.”

Taylor Royal, in contrast, supports school choice.

On the issue of biological boys in girls’ bathrooms and sports, Royal and Schwartz both strongly opposed. Goldoni stated that the issue was essentially “trying to legislate something as a solution in search of a problem.”

There were issues where all three candidates agreed, including upholding “the will of the people” on recently passed ballot initiatives regarding medical marijuana and supporting funding for mental health programs.

After the forum, Goldini told The Plains Sentinel that if elected, her top priorities would be fiscal issues and the budget, and that she was not looking to tow a party line.

“I am a moderate Democrat through and through. My father was a Republican, my stepfather was a Republican. I married a Republican. I have an entire farm family that’s also Republican. So I’ve spent my entire life communicating and making friends and having lively discourse.”

After the primary on May 12, only two of the three candidates will go on to face each other in the general election, with a likely showdown in the general election to potentially determine whether Republicans keep or lose a supermajority in the Unicameral.

— Matt Johnson is a freelance reporter with The Plains Sentinel.

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