Voters in Nebraska’s 1st Congressional District will head to the polls on Tuesday to select the person to fill the seat left vacant by Jeff Fortenberry for the remainder of 2022. Fortenberry resigned from Congress last March after being convicted of making false statements to federal investigators and for falsifying and concealing material facts.
Lancaster County Election Commissioner Dave Shively tells KLIN News, “I really don’t have a prediction for this election. It is kind of hard because usually when we do predictions, we base it off historical trends. Since we haven’t had a special election for a Congressional seat in Nebraska since 1951, it is hard to go by that. Our early voting has been pretty steady, especially in person. Early voting, our numbers are up from the Primary but our early voting by mail is down a little bit. I would anticipate we will see a turnout of what we saw in the Primary back in May. That was about a 33% to 35% turnout.”
Shively says filling that empty seat is the only issue on the ballot. There are two names, Republican Mike Flood and Democrat Patty Pansing Brooks.
Polls in Lancaster County will open at 8 a.m. and close at 8 p.m. Shively reminds voters who requested an early ballot that they need to be turned in by the time polls close at 8 p.m. That can be done in person at the Election Commission Office located at 601 N. 46th Street. There is also a drop off box located outside the building.
Voters in District 1 will also vote on who will fill that seat permanently during the General Election on November 8th.