GOP forum highlights property taxes, girls' sports, out-of-state money
by Matt Johnson
OMAHA – Four Republican candidates for state legislature spoke at a Republican candidate forum on Monday in Omaha. The candidates focused on the state’s continued attempts to lower property taxes, keeping biological men out of women’s sports, and out-of-state money being used to influence elections.
The forum was held during the Greater Omaha Pachyderm Luncheon and was attended by Chris Anderson (LD-20), Jay Jackson (LD-14), Derek Schwartz (LD-18), and Ted Japp (LD-16).
Anderson Aims to Flip Fredrickson’s Seat
Of the four candidates, only Chris Anderson is running for a seat currently held by a Democrat, John Fredrickson. Fredrickson won the seat by only 82 votes when he beat Stu Dornan in 2022.
“He had close to a million [dollars] when he beat Stu Dornan—from what I hear, East and West Coast PAC money,” Anderson said. “People who will never meet him want to keep him in the blue dot, because I’m right in the heart of it.”
The race for the seat may be just as close and as well-funded this time around.
“I’m running against an incumbent; he has $212,000 in the bank right now,” Anderson said. “It deters a lot of good people from running for politics, unfortunately, around the country, because that’s a lot of money for a state race.”
Anderson is confident he can flip the seat, however. He said he is focused on speaking to constituents door-to-door and hearing their concerns. The number one issue on their minds, he said, is property taxes.
“I met a guy yesterday in Harvey Oaks. He’s lived here for 55 years, and he’s a fourth-generation Nebraskan,” Anderson said. “He and his wife just bought five acres in Wyoming, because it’s too expensive to live here—their property taxes are too much, and they’re not predictable each year. He’s on a fixed income, so it’s hard to hear that.”
Fredrickson’s seat is a focus for the GOP as the Unicameral currently has 33 seats held by Republicans, and with few seats in play, flipping seats held by Democrats—and even holding current seats—could be a struggle in the coming midterm election.
Ted Japp, Fifth-Generation Nebraska Candidate
Ted Japp is running to succeed Ben Hansen in District 16, which includes rural parts of Washington, Burt, Cuming, and Stanton Counties.
“It’s 100 miles across from the southeast corner to the northwest corner, and the cattle outnumber the people by about seven to one—that’s not a joke,” Japp said. He is a fifth-generation Washington County resident whose great-great-grandfather came to Nebraska in the 1860s, and the land Japp lives on today includes some of the original plot that was purchased when his family settled as pioneers.
Japp’s district is the most conservative of the four speakers, swinging for Trump by over 47 points in 2024, with his predecessor Ben Hansen winning the seat by more than 40% two years ago. His priorities include supporting people with special needs, specifically mentioning his 32-year-old son with severe autism. He also wants to push back against the “brain drain” of people leaving Nebraska by encouraging more business and industry to come here.
“We do have a good work ethic here. We have a good education system. We have low power rates. We produce electricity a lot cheaper than a lot of other states,” Japp said. “There’s no reason that people wouldn’t come to Nebraska. It’s a great place to live.”
Jay Jackson Strives for Decent Discourse
Jay Jackson, a lawyer and military veteran who referred to himself as “stateless” until he came to Nebraska as a reservist, is the author of the book Decent Discourse. Jackson positions himself as someone willing to reach across party lines and work with Democrats.
“I am the kind of person that’s convinced that my Democratic neighbors are wrong people to be convinced and not enemies to be defeated,” Jackson said. “And I think it’s vastly important that with all we have in common in Nebraska that we work together.”
All four candidates, when asked, stated support for winner-take-all, pro-life issues, and prohibiting boys in girls’ dressing rooms, including Jackson. “My three boys all know which restroom to use,” Jackson said.
Jackson’s primary focus, however, seemed to be on fiscal issues. “I would love to know why we have 232 boards and commissions in our state and why those continue to grow,” Jackson said. “I would love to know why the salaries and expenses of our administrators continue to grow while our teachers’ starting salary is the second worst in the nation.”
And while Jackson supported lowering property taxes, he also took aim at sales tax exemptions in the state. “If you’ve got a really good lobbyist—not because you’re a single mom with diapers, but because you’re a dog groomer or a tattoo artist or a pool cleaner with a great lobbyist—then you don’t have to pay sales tax. I don’t want to raise anybody’s sales taxes, but whether or not you pay it shouldn’t depend on how good your lobbyist is.”
Derek Schwartz and the Ag Economy
Derek Schwartz became the owner of a franchise business at 26 years old and then, six years ago in April, became a police officer in the La Vista Police Department. He also describes himself as a “39-year-old farm kid,” with a focus on agriculture as a priority issue.
“Nebraska is an ag state. When ag does better, everybody does better in this state,” he said. “We have the infrastructure here already, I think we have an opportunity to expand on that. We even have to lean more into biofuels and bolstering our ag economy. Let’s use what we have here, let’s use what we know.”
Schwartz hopes that emphasis on growing the agricultural economy in Nebraska will help bring more people to live in the Cornhusker state, further boosting the local economy.
“Nebraska being a state of only roughly 2 million—our population base is extremely low,” Schwartz said. “If we grow our population base, then we have a better opportunity to fund these things while mitigating the burden from each individual person. So we need to grow our economy and also grow our population.”
Other top issues are public safety, property tax reform, and keeping biological men out of girls’ sports and locker rooms. “Two little girls in my household,” Schwartz said. “We’re going to fight for our little girls, their spaces, their sports, and their opportunities. And I am vehemently pro-life.”
Knocking Doors Makes a Difference
With warmer weather coming this week, the candidates are preparing for intense door-knocking in their districts. Chris Anderson has knocked on about 500 doors during his campaign, while Jay Jackson has reached around 6,000.
Brett Lindstrom, the moderator of the forum and state senator from 2014 to 2022, cited door-knocking as an important part of representing constituents.
“It’s so powerful to go through that process of door knocking,” Lindstrom said. “Every single person can make a difference and pass the legislation because somebody brought it up as a constituent… keep that in mind, because it does affect the way that you will legislate. You’ll be better for it.”
The filing deadline for non-incumbent candidates is March 2.
Matt Johnson is a freelance reporter with The Plains Sentinel.
