Tuesday night was bad for Omaha Republicans. Jean Stothert, who made history as both the first woman elected mayor of Omaha and the first mayor to be elected three times, lost to challenger John Ewing by over 12%. This was a dramatic shift from four years ago, when Stothert defeated Democratic challenger PJ Neary by over 30 points in 2021.
Many could see the defeat coming well in advance, from online chatter about Stothert facing “the fight of her life” and “hoping for a miracle” to a last-minute attempt to tie Ewing to controversial transgender sports policies. In the end, it wasn’t enough, and the Stothert campaign suffered a decisive defeat on election night.
Chris Nelson, Stothert’s campaign manager, cited low voter turnout in West Omaha as a key reason for Stothert’s defeat, along with lingering discontent about the streetcar project, which was amplified by challenger Mike McDonnell in the primary.
Gov. Pillen also cited low voter turnout as the driving factor in Stothert’s loss. “It’s incredibly important that every one of us never, ever forget this lesson,” Pillen said. “The mayor should have been reelected, slam dunk, hands down. But 75% of us stayed home.”
Former Omaha Police Officers Association (OPOA) President Tony Connor, who supported Mike McDonnell in the primary, said that leadership has a “shelf life” and Stothert had been in office too long to remain effective.
“The longer someone stays in leadership, they’re unaware of blind spots,” Connor said. “And when ego prevents them from taking advice, those blind spots turn into liabilities. A double-digit loss is proof of that.”
Columnist Joe Herring had similar comments. “Jean Stothert finally wore out her welcome. She’ll move away from Omaha before the 4th of July, in my humble, sainted, self-anointed opinion. Sadly, her replacement is a puppet.”
Stothert appeared only for a four-minute concession speech before leaving immediately. She thanked her campaign staff and supporters and told the room, “Based on your faces, I’m holding up better than you all tonight.”
The full reason for the dramatic loss has yet to be determined in post-election analysis, but it’s clear that the Republican Party, despite recent shows of support at the state and county level, remains largely divided. Many Republican votes were left on the table on Tuesday night, and the fractured party will have to pull itself together if it hopes to prevent the “blue dot” of Omaha from expanding beyond the boundaries of Douglas County before 2026.
