When it comes to politics, Nebraska has always been unique.

Another Nebraska candidate who is registered as an independent has joined the race for a high-ranking government position. Former state senator Brett Lindstrom has filed the paperwork to get the necessary signatures to be put on the November ballot for governor.

Nebraska has always been a state that tended to ignore party affiliation, at least on paper. We have open primaries for our state senators and city offices. Even though it doesn’t always work out this way in practice, our Unicameral is officially nonpartisan.

It’s interesting that both Brett Lindstrom and Dan Osborn can win in the general election, but they probably couldn’t win if they were attached to their respective parties. Lindstrom couldn’t beat Pillen for the Republican nomination, and Osborn, while a lifelong Independent, would most likely have to attach himself to the Democratic Party if Nebraska had a strong Democratic Party to attach himself to.

The younger voters won’t remember this, but there was a time in the not too distant past when Nebraska had a strong Democratic Party. We had Democratic governors like JJ Exon, Bob Kerry, and Ben Nelson. All three went on to be powerful United States Senators.

But in the political world, that was a lifetime ago. Outside of Omaha, the Democratic Party is a shell of its past glory days. There have been elections where the Legal Marijuana NOW Party had more candidates on the statewide ballot than the Democrats.

Likewise, the younger voters may not recall a time when Republican politicians ran on issues like fiscal responsibility, family values, and rule of law. Now they run on stoking fear that if you vote for their radical left opponent, boys will be in your daughter’s bathroom, and communists will take over the government.

So where does that leave us today? Brett Lindstrom is an old-school Republican. A fiscal conservative, pro-life, pro-business candidate. When vying for the nomination for the second congressional district, he needed the far-right MAGA crowd to get the Republican nomination, but that isn’t who he is. So, he dropped out of the congressional race and left the Republican Party.

Now this old-school Republican is trying to become governor. How will this all play out?

It depends on who you ask. According to all the political “experts” on social media, he either takes enough anti-abortion votes away from Pillen to put Lynne in the governor’s mansion, or it takes away the independent and Republican anti-Pillen voters from her and

gives the governor four more years. Of course, it’s also possible that Brett will take enough votes from both sides to win the race.

Both the Republican and Democratic parties are going through identity crises. Both are going further to the right or left, leaving moderates in the dust. More and more voters are registering as nonpartisan.

Lynne Walz has the best chance a Democrat has had to win the governor’s seat in years. She’s raised more money than any Democratic candidate in decades. She has both an ag and a business background. She is a moderate who has worked with both sides of the aisle to get things done. Lately she’s had good turnouts at her town halls across the state. I see Lynne Walz yard signs up all over town.

Brett could also win as an Independent. He has the backing of many in the business community. He is a traditional Republican more concerned with moving the state forward than identity politics. Brett will appeal to many Republican voters and right-leaning Independents.

Jim Pillen is a failed governor. Even if you don’t consider the scandals like the 2.5 million no-bid contract or the death of the young man on one of Pillen’s farms, he has put the state in debt and has no positive accomplishments to campaign on.

Nebraska cannot afford another 4 years of Jim Pillen.

While coming at it from different angles, either Lynne or Brett would be a much better choice than the current occupant of the office. Both are intelligent, honest, hard-working, and experienced.

Pillen, on the other hand……

As we get closer to November, if it looks like either Brett or Lynne will be a spoiler that puts the governor back in office, one of them will have to drop out. But for now, we have a three-way race for governor.

As I said, when it comes to politics, we are a unique state. There truly is no place like Nebraska.

Tom Becka is a long time Nebraska broadcaster who for over 30 years has been covering Omaha and Midwest issues on both radio and TV. He has been a guest on numerous national cable and news shows, filled in for nationally syndicated talk radio programs and Talkers Magazine has recognized him as one of the Top 100 talk show hosts in the country 10 times. Never afraid to ruffle some feathers, his ‘Becka’s Beat’ commentaries can be found online on Youtube and other digital platforms.

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