(Picture credit Matt Johnson)
OMAHA — With the 2026 gubernatorial race rapidly drawing to a close, Lynne Walz came to Omaha for a final pitch to rally her base ahead of Election Day, campaigning with Kansas Gov. Laura Kelly on Friday and then with Denise Powell on Saturday.
Kelly appeared briefly with Walz in Omaha on Friday but had to return to her home state before a planned evening event, citing weather concerns. She spoke via pre-recorded video to a room of around 70 guests at the Forge Event Hall in Omaha.
“You have an opportunity to fix what’s wrong with Nebraska,” Kelly said. “You know, I got elected here in Kansas in 2018 because we were in the same situation that Nebraska is now. I was able to fix it. Lynne will be able to fix it for you.”
Speaking to The Plains Sentinel, Walz described Kelly as a “role model,” largely because of the reality of having to reach across party lines as governor.
“She knows the work that I’ve done already to work across the aisle and bring people together,” Walz said. “What Nebraska needs is a leader who can bring Republicans and Democrats and Independents together to really get good policy done.”
Kelly has governed as a Democrat in a state with a Republican legislature for her entire eight years in office. Walz will likely face a similar situation if elected governor of Nebraska.
Rallying Troops on Halloween
On Saturday, congressional candidate Denise Powell joined Walz at a canvassing event at her campaign office.
“I don’t know how you’re feeling, but I’m feeling pretty good,” Powell said, “because I know that the people of this state and this district have had enough, and they are ready for change.”
The small office space in midtown Omaha was packed with 100 volunteers or more, ready to hit the streets. A few of them were members of the “Pissed off Grandmas,” singing a handful of songs for the crowd. One was about Lynne Walz, set to the tune of “This Little Light of Mine,” with the words changed to “This Little Vote of Mine.”
The event was held on the morning of Halloween, a date that did not go unnoticed by John Fredrickson, who served with Walz for two years in the state legislature and is now running for reelection in LD-20.
“Happy LD-20 and happy Halloween,” Fredrickson said. “I’m so excited to see all of you here to see this energy. I think as a candidate during this final 72 hours, this energy means the world to us because we’re working hard, we’re exhausted, and this means a lot.”
One woman got into the spirit of the holiday, dressing up as “Jim Pillen,” with a devil costume combined with a pig snout and ears.
Negative Ads, No-Bid Contract
The general election has seen heavy spending in the governor’s race, with nearly $20 million in spending—an outsized amount relative to prior general elections, much of it from the Pillen campaign and a substantial share of it attack ads.
Walz described the negative ads as a “distraction.”
“It’s all a distraction to try to take people’s focus away from what has really happened over the last four years of mismanagement of our finances, our budget crisis, all a distraction,” Walz said.
One of Walz’s own negative ads against Pillen highlighted a $2.5 million no-bid contract that was the subject of an investigation by the Lincoln Police Department. That investigation has now concluded, with the Attorney General’s Office stating that “their investigation determined that the Governor’s Office was not implicated in any criminal wrongdoing.”
Walz was not impressed with this finding.
“I think that Nebraskans are smart enough to know that it still happened,” Walz said. “There was still a no-bid contract that was awarded to a friend of his, and honestly, to say that you’re not guilty is nothing to brag about, because I don’t think a governor should have ever been in a position where they had to defend themselves.”
A Look Toward Election Night
Nebraska’s governor’s race is ranked “Lean Republican” by the Cook Political Report and “Likely Republican” by Sabato’s Crystal Ball, but polls on the race have been sporadic. One October survey by Concord Public Opinion Partners showed Walz with a three-point lead over Pillen, while a New York Times/Siena poll released Saturday placed Pillen 13 points ahead, 53% to 40%.
With Tuesday’s election imminent, voters will not have to wait long to learn the actual results of the race. In the meantime, Walz is optimistic.
“I’m very confident,” Walz said. “Lots of people that we’ve had conversations with, who you know may have been voting Republican or voting for Jim Pillen and have changed their mind because they realize that we’ve got to have a change. So we’re really optimistic about election night.”
— Matt Johnson is a freelance reporter with The Plains Sentinel.