National Dems Meddle in Messy NE-02 Primary
The Bench is a “new dark-money backed enterprise of unparalleled scale and complexity” that “works with the broader Democratic ecosystem, including the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee.”
The Bench has endorsed dark-money Denise Powell in the NE-02 primary and new reporting highlights the are a top donor to Fight for Nebraska PAC.
Fight for Nebraska PAC is the largest spender of dark money in the NE-02 primary, spending “more than $1.2 million on ads supporting Powell and $653,000 on ads opposing Cavanaugh.”
“National Democrats are pumping dark money into Nebraska’s 2nd congressional district to meddle in the messy primary. So much for the ‘Save Democracy’ crowd.” – NRCC Spokesman Zach Bannon
Read more from Nebraska Public Media here or see excerpts below:
Outside spending reaches fever pitch in Nebraska congressional primary as candidates spar over ‘dark money’
Molly Ashford
Nebraska Public Media
May 11, 2026
The Democratic primary for Nebraska’s second congressional district has attracted more than $5.6 million in outside ad spending.
Those millions, mostly from political action committees, have largely funded advertising supporting Denise Powell and opposing John Cavanaugh – two of the apparent frontrunners in the contentious, crowded primary race to face off with sole Republican candidate Brinker Harding in November.
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The outside spending from PACs comes in the form of independent expenditures, defined by the Federal Election Commission as a communication “that expressly advocates the election or defeat of a clearly identified candidate and which is not made in coordination with any candidate or their campaign or political party.”
Candidates can’t directly coordinate with PACs. But many candidates in tough races on either side of the aisle, including Cavanaugh and Powell, engage in a practice called “red-boxing” by outlining messaging priorities on public campaign websites that are often utilized by PACs in their ads.
By late April, both Cavanaugh and Powell highlighted attacks on the other as a key messaging priority.
In the Nebraska race, the independent expenditures mostly come from Super PACs and Hybrid PACs. Both types of PACs can raise unlimited money to make independent expenditures, but Hybrid PACs can also contribute directly to candidates.
The biggest spender is Fight for Nebraska PAC, a Nebraska-based Super PAC created in March that has spent more than $1.2 million on ads supporting Powell and $653,000 on ads opposing Cavanaugh. It’s also been the subject of online speculation, since an initial FEC filing listed an address for the PAC linked to Omaha philanthropist Katie Weitz. Weitz’s husband, Tim Wilson, is listed as the PAC’s treasurer.
An updated FEC filing changed the listed address to a P.O. box. Weitz did not respond to an email seeking comment on her involvement in the PAC. Members of the Weitz family are prolific Democratic donors in Omaha and across Nebraska.
The top donors to Fight for Nebraska PAC are two other PACs – the Way Back PAC and The Bench PAC. It also received smaller donations from the Western Futures Fund, a 501(c)(4) nonprofit that does not disclose any information about its donors, and a 501(c)(3) nonprofit called Global Impact. Western Futures Fund is also a major donor to Way Back PAC.
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