The 2018 Nebraska gubernatorial election took place on November 6, 2018, to elect the Governor of Nebraska, concurrently with the election of Nebraska's Class I U.S. Senate seat, as well as other elections to the United States Senate in other states, elections to the United States House of Representatives, and various Nebraska and local elections. Incumbent Republican Governor Pete Ricketts won re-election to a second term.
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| Turnout | 57.95% | |||||||||||||||||||
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   Ricketts: 50–60% 60–70% 70–80% 80–90% >90% Krist: 50–60% 60–70% 70–80% 80–90% >90% Tie: 50% No votes | ||||||||||||||||||||
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Republican primary
Candidates
Declared
- Krystal Gabel, writer, candidate for Metropolitan Utilities District in 2016 and candidate for Omaha City Council in 2017
- Pete Ricketts, incumbent governor
- Running mate: Mike Foley, incumbent lieutenant governor
Declined
- Mike Flood, former Speaker of the Nebraska Legislature
- Bob Krist, state senator (running as a Democrat)
Endorsements
- Nebraska Farm Bureau
- NRA Political Victory Fund
Results
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Republican | Pete Ricketts (incumbent) | 138,292 | 81.42 | |
| Republican | Krystal Gabel | 31,568 | 18.58 | |
| Total votes | 169,860 | 100.00 | ||
Democratic primary
Candidates
Declared
- Tyler Davis, University of Nebraska, Omaha instructor
- Bob Krist, state senator
- Running Mate: Lynne Walz, state senator
- Vanessa Gayle Ward, activist
Declined
- Chuck Hassebrook, former Regent of the University of Nebraska and nominee for governor in 2014 (running for the legislature)
- Steve Lathrop, former state senator (running for the legislature)
Endorsements
- State legislators
- Burke Harr, Nebraska Legislature 8th District
- Mayors
- Chris Beutler, Lincoln
- Federal Level Politicians
- Brad Ashford, Former Congressman
Results
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Democratic | Bob Krist | 54,992 | 59.81 | |
| Democratic | Vanessa Gayle Ward | 26,478 | 28.80 | |
| Democratic | Tyler Davis | 10,472 | 11.39 | |
| Total votes | 91,942 | 100.00 | ||
Independents
State Senator Bob Krist announced in September 2017 he left the Republican Party in order to mount a third party challenge against Governor Ricketts. Krist planned to create a new party in order to run, which will require submitting 5,000 signatures to qualify the party for the ballot. However, in February 2018 he abandoned the independent candidacy and became a Democrat.
Candidates
Withdrawn
- Bob Krist, state senator (running as a Democrat)
General election
Predictions
| Source | Ranking | As of |
|---|---|---|
| The Cook Political Report | Safe R | October 26, 2018 |
| The Washington Post | Safe R | November 5, 2018 |
| FiveThirtyEight | Safe R | November 5, 2018 |
| Rothenberg Political Report | Safe R | November 1, 2018 |
| Sabato's Crystal Ball | Safe R | November 5, 2018 |
| RealClearPolitics | Safe R | November 4, 2018 |
| Daily Kos | Safe R | November 5, 2018 |
| Fox News | Likely R | November 5, 2018 |
| Politico | Safe R | November 5, 2018 |
| Governing | Safe R | November 5, 2018 |
- Notes
Debates
| Host network/sponsors | Date | Link(s) | Participants | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Bob Krist (D) | Pete Ricketts (R) | ||||
| KMTV-TV | August 30, 2018 3:00 pm MDT | Invited | Invited | ||
Results
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Republican | Pete Ricketts (incumbent) | 411,812 | 59.00% | +1.85% | |
| Democratic | Bob Krist | 286,169 | 41.00% | +1.77% | |
| Total votes | 697,981 | 100.00% | N/A | ||
| Republican hold | |||||
Counties that flipped from Democratic to Republican
Counties that flipped from Republican to Democratic
See also
References
External links
- Official campaign websites