Denise Powell Embraces Outside PAC Support Moments After Voting in Primary Election

by Matt Johnson

(Picture credit Matt Johnson)

OMAHA — With Don Bacon stepping down from Congress, Democrats see a real chance of flipping Nebraska’s 2nd Congressional District (CD2) this November. As such, money from donors, campaigns, and PACs has come flooding in — a total of nearly $6 million in outside ad spending on the Democratic primary alone as of May 11, 2026.

One of the major beneficiaries of this PAC money is Denise Powell, one of six Democrats on the May 12 primary ballot who hopes to challenge Brinker Harding, the lone Republican, for the retiring Don Bacon’s House seat. She has raised $1,617,997 for her campaign so far (as of April 22, 2026), with more than $5.6 million in PAC and “dark money” independent expenditures also supporting her.

And Powell is not at all ashamed to admit it. When asked by The Plains Sentinel about PAC money supporting her campaign, Powell said she was “proud” of the national support behind her run for Congress.

“I’m really proud of some of the organizations that are in my corner,” Powell said. “I mean, the organizations that are behind me are organizations like EMILY’s List, like Elect Democratic Women, BOLD PAC, which is the Hispanic Caucus. It’s not surprising to me that so many people see this opportunity here.”

Powell has previously been more evasive when asked about outside PAC support in her race. Last week, she responded, in an interview with WOWT, to ads calling her “Dark Money Denise” over her PAC support, saying voters should focus on the issues, not “desperate lies” from her opponent, Cavanaugh.

Powell Says She Wants to Win Over the Middle

CD2 has been largely described as a “purple district,” one in which Don Bacon has won but Donald Trump has lost — creating the infamous “blue dot.”

“I’m not running just for Democrats, and a lot of the work that I’ve done on issues like schools and reproductive rights and medical cannabis and paid sick leave — those were issues that I spoke to voters of all stripes on,” Powell said Tuesday.

Bacon has clashed with President Trump on numerous occasions over the years and has drawn support from both Democrats and Independents during his tenure. Powell says she hopes to be a House member in very much the same vein.

“I actually have enormous respect for Congressman Bacon in a lot of ways. He is somebody who a lot of Democratic members of the House have said is always willing to listen and come to the table, and that’s saying a lot in this environment. I hope to lead the same way.”

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