NEBRASKA — Cindy Burbank won the Nebraska Democratic primary for U.S. Senate, defeating pastor William Forbes by a margin of 90% to 9%. Burbank, a pharmacy technician, has pledged to drop out of the race before November to make way for independent candidate Dan Osborn, who has been endorsed by the Nebraska Democratic Party.

Burbank entered the Democratic Senate race shortly before the filing deadline, after Forbes filed at the last minute. She said she joined the contest after hearing chatter that Republicans were trying to place a Democrat on the ballot. Forbes has supported Donald Trump in recent elections and attended a training session run by a conservative group, though he denied being a Republican plant.

The Nebraska Democratic Party had declined to field a candidate in the Senate race, hoping to allow a matchup between Osborn and Republican Pete Ricketts. Party chair Jane Kleeb and the state Democratic Party encouraged voters to support Burbank in the primary, accusing Forbes of being a "Ricketts plant."

Forbes rejected the characterization. "I've been a Democrat my entire life — not when it was convenient," he said. He also said, "Dan Osborn isn't a Democrat at all."

Burbank plans to evaluate her prospects based on polling and aims to decide in time to remove her name from the November ballot. "I will drop out when and if the time comes that I cannot win in November. And I think anybody with any dignity should do that," she said. She wrote separately that Osborn "deserves a fair shot against Ricketts."

Democrats have not won a Senate race in Nebraska since 2006. Osborn ran as an independent in the 2024 Senate race and lost to Republican Senator Deb Fischer by 7 points. Trump carried Nebraska by 20 points in the 2024 presidential election.