LINCOLN, Neb. — Dan Osborn has met state requirements to appear on Nebraska’s general election ballot for U.S. Senate this November, the Nebraska secretary of state’s office confirmed Thursday.
What changed for voters
The secretary of state’s Elections Division verified that the Osborn campaign turned in enough valid petition signatures to qualify as a nonpartisan candidate. Campaign filings show the team submitted more than the minimum number of certified signatures required under state law.
Signature totals by congressional district
Officials said the campaign collected at least 6,096 valid signatures statewide. The verified counts by district are shown below:
| Congressional District | Verified Signatures |
|---|---|
| District 1 | 2,314 |
| District 2 | 1,897 |
| District 3 | 1,885 |
Legal threshold and verification process
Under Nebraska law, a U.S. Senate candidate seeking placement on the ballot by petition must gather at least 4,000 signatures from registered Nebraska voters, including a minimum of 750 from each of the state’s three congressional districts. The secretary of state’s office said county election officials were instructed they could stop verifying once petitions met the 110% threshold set out in Nebraska Revised Statute §32-618.
The office first authorized Osborn’s petitions for circulation in January. The campaign returned completed petitions to the secretary of state on June 11, triggering the verification process that concluded this week.
What this means going forward
With certification complete, Osborn’s name will appear on the November general election ballot as a nonpartisan candidate. Voters across Nebraska will be able to choose among all certified candidates when they cast ballots in the U.S. Senate race.
- Osborn cleared the statutory petition minimum by a substantial margin.
- Verification was conducted using the 110% verification rule from state statute.
- The campaign met district-by-district minimums required for statewide offices.
The secretary of state’s office provided the verification results; the office did not issue additional comment beyond the certification details released Thursday.
Reporting from News Block: I am Peter Novak, covering state politics from Lincoln.
