The 2022 Nebraska's 1st congressional district special election, which was held on June 28, 2022, was triggered when Republican representative

Jeff Fortenberry Jeffrey Lane Fortenberry (born December 27, 1960) is an American politician. He served in the United States House of Representatives from 2005 to 2022, representing as a member of the Republican Party (United States), Republican Party. In Octo ...

resigned on March 31, having been convicted of lying to the

FBI The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) is the domestic Intelligence agency, intelligence and Security agency, security service of the United States and Federal law enforcement in the United States, its principal federal law enforcement ag ...

about campaign contributions. Under Nebraska state law, major party nominees for special elections are selected by the party through its executive committee or party convention, with the special election scheduled by Governor

Pete Ricketts John Peter Ricketts (born August 19, 1964) is an American businessman and politician serving as the Seniority in the United States Senate, junior United States Senate, United States senator from Nebraska since 2023. A member of the Republican Part ...

within 90 days after the seat's vacancy. The election came under some controversy over the discovery that it would be held in the new post- 2020 redistricting Nebraska's 1st congressional district. While some Nebraska officials claimed that the new map took immediate effect when signed, this was not in line with congressional rules which only recognized pre-2020 redistricting boundaries for the rest of 2022. It also caused confusion among Nebraska residents wanting to vote in the election or receive constituent services, especially as congressional funds are not allowed to be spent outside the recognized old district boundaries. Against a backdrop of the ''

Dobbs v. Jackson Women's Health Organization ''Dobbs v. Jackson Women's Health Organization'', 597 U.S. 215 (2022), is a List of landmark court decisions in the United States, landmark decision of the Supreme Court of the United States, United States Supreme Court in which the court held ...

'' ruling four days before the election which overturned the landmark ''

Roe v. Wade ''Roe v. Wade'', 410 U.S. 113 (1973),. was a List of landmark court decisions in the United States, landmark decision of the U.S. Supreme Court in which the Court ruled that the Constitution of the United States protected the right to have an ...

'' case on

abortion Abortion is the early termination of a pregnancy by removal or expulsion of an embryo or fetus. Abortions that occur without intervention are known as miscarriages or "spontaneous abortions", and occur in roughly 30–40% of all pregnan ...

, Republican nominee Mike Flood promoted his sponsorship of a 2010 Nebraska state law which banned abortions 20 weeks after

fertilization Fertilisation or fertilization (see American and British English spelling differences#-ise, -ize (-isation, -ization), spelling differences), also known as generative fertilisation, syngamy and impregnation, is the fusion of gametes to give ...

in a campaign ad. Meanwhile,

Democrat Democrat, Democrats, or Democratic may refer to: Politics *A proponent of democracy, or democratic government; a form of government involving rule by the people. *A member of a Democratic Party: **Democratic Party (Cyprus) (DCY) **Democratic Part ...

Patty Pansing Brooks highlighted her support for

abortion rights Abortion-rights movements, also self-styled as pro-choice movements, are movements that advocate for legal access to induced abortion services, including elective abortion. They seek to represent and support women who wish to terminate their p ...

, criticizing the ''Dobbs'' decision as an "assault on privacy" and "a step backward in American culture", and remarked that the election was the first instance where "we can fight back at the ballot box". After a campaign described by the ''

Norfolk Daily News The ''Norfolk Daily News'' is a daily newspaper located in Norfolk, Nebraska. It was founded in 1877 and purchased by the Huse family is 1888, and Huse Publishing has maintained ownership of the paper since. In addition to expanding the circulat ...

'' as "mostly positive" with "lighthearted" ads, Flood declared victory at 10:23 pm CDT, two hours after polls closed, promising to fight inflation, for which he blamed the policies of the

Biden administration Joe Biden's tenure as the List of presidents of the United States, 46th president of the United States began with Inauguration of Joe Biden, his inauguration on January 20, 2021, and ended on January 20, 2025. Biden, a member of the Democr ...

. In light of the competitiveness of the election, (early results had shown Flood trailing Pansing Brooks)

Nebraska Democratic Party The Nebraska Democratic Party (NDP) is the affiliate of the Democratic Party in the state of Nebraska. Over 700 Democrats are elected across the state of Nebraska. Jane Kleeb is the chair of the Nebraska Democratic Party and also serves as the M ...

chair

Jane Kleeb Jane Fleming Kleeb ( ) is an American political executive and activist. She is the founder and president of Bold Alliance, Chair of the Nebraska Democratic Party and a board member of Our Revolution and Matriarch PAC. Early life and education ...

released a statement that the national Democratic Party needed to invest more in rural areas considered to be "unwinnable" and that Pansing Brooks "connected with voters". Flood won a full term in November 2022 in a rematch with Pansing Brooks.

Candidates

The Democratic and Republican nominees were selected by their respective party's executive committee on April 5 and April 9, respectively. Mike Flood defeated John Glen Weaver through the party's secret ballot 24 to Weaver's 5 votes.

Nominees

* Patty Pansing Brooks (Democratic), state senator * Mike Flood (Republican), state senator (20052013, 20212022), former speaker of the

Nebraska Legislature The Nebraska Legislature (also called the Unicameral) is the legislative branch, legislature of the U.S. state of Nebraska. The Legislature meets at the Nebraska State Capitol in Lincoln, Nebraska, Lincoln. With 49 members, known as "senators ...

(20072013), and candidate for governor in

2014 The year 2014 was marked by the surge of the Western African Ebola epidemic, West African Ebola epidemic, which began in 2013, becoming the List of Ebola outbreaks, most widespread outbreak of the Ebola, Ebola virus in human history, resul ...

General election

Endorsements

Predictions

Fundraising

Results

Pansing Brooks's vote share was boosted by a higher-than-expected turnout in Lancaster County, home to state capital

Lincoln Lincoln most commonly refers to: * Abraham Lincoln (1809–1865), the 16th president of the United States * Lincoln, England, cathedral city and county town of Lincolnshire, England * Lincoln, Nebraska, the capital of Nebraska, U.S. * Lincoln (na ...

, where she served as state senator, with the second-highest turnout of all counties. She also came within a five-point margin of winning the suburban

Omaha Omaha ( ) is the List of cities in Nebraska, most populous city in the U.S. state of Nebraska. It is located in the Midwestern United States along the Missouri River, about north of the mouth of the Platte River. The nation's List of United S ...

county of Sarpy. Meanwhile, Flood's victory was the result of him winning more rural counties in the district. Pansing Brooks's outperformance of Biden in the district, in spite of being outspent by Flood, prompted some Democratic strategists to paint the results as a

moral victory A moral victory occurs when a person, team, army or other group loses a confrontation, and yet achieves some other moral gain. This gain might be unrelated to the confrontation in question, and the gain is often considerably less than what would ...

in a "post-''Roe''" era. In reaction to the results, Flood acknowledged the need for him to increase his support in the Lincoln area and suburban Omaha.

References

{{2022 United States elections Nebraska 01 special United States House of Representatives 01 special United States House of Representatives 2022 01 2022 01 special