Nebraska Senate ‘spoiler’ candidates battle over Democrat ballot vacancy

Cindy Burbank won Nebraska's Democratic Senate primary in May and dropped out in July, a move her primary opponent William Forbes calls a scheme to funnel support to independent Dan Osborn. Forbes, who took just 10% of the primary vote, is asking a Lancaster County judge to force Democrats to name a replacement nominee for November.

The Nebraska Democratic Central Committee voted over the weekend not to fill the vacancy, and party attorneys argue state law makes replacement discretionary, not mandatory, when a candidate withdraws. Forbes counters that Democrats are quietly boosting Osborn without saying so and confusing primary voters who thought they were picking an actual nominee.

Complicating matters, Forbes himself faces accusations of being a Republican-aligned plant meant to force the issue, given his history of conservative activism. The judge, who already denied Forbes a temporary injunction, is expected to rule before the Sept. 11 certification deadline — with an appeal to the state Supreme Court considered all but certain either way.

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