# Burbank wins Democratic primary, clears way for Osborn's Senate bid  
**Published:** 2026-05-13T02:05:10.000Z  
**Source:** [Nebraska Examiner](https://nebraskaexaminer.com/2026/05/12/burbank-wins-nebraska-dem-u-s-senate-primary-likely-giving-osborn-a-clearer-shot-against-ricketts/)  
**AI-generated:** yes (claude-haiku-4-5-20251001)  
**Canonical:** https://lincolne.news/article/burbank-wins-democratic-primary-clears-way-for-osborn-s-senate-bid

Democrat Cindy Burbank won the Nebraska Democratic Senate primary on Tuesday, having pledged to drop out of the general election in support of Osborn's candidacy. The victory, reported by the [Nebraska Examiner](https://nebraskaexaminer.com/2026/05/12/burbank-wins-nebraska-dem-u-s-senate-primary-likely-giving-osborn-a-clearer-shot-against-ricketts/), sets up an unusual general election dynamic in one of the nation's most competitive Senate races.

Burbank, a 62-year-old retired pharmacy technician, won the Democratic Senate primary on May 12 in Nebraska. Burbank won with about 90% of the vote over William Forbes, a pastor whom Democrats argued was a plant who aimed to win the Democratic line to siphon votes away from Osborn, a Navy veteran and union leader.

Republican Senator Pete Ricketts enters the 2026 election cycle as the favorite in deeply red Nebraska, but Dan Osborn is giving him a run for his money and could become the first independent elected to the U.S. Senate from the state in 90 years. Osborn, who has built a brand around working-class populism, is trying to do better in 2026 than his six percentage point loss in 2024 to Republican U.S. Sen. Deb Fischer.

The Nebraska Democratic Party did not recruit its own candidate this cycle, instead backing Burbank to prevent Forbes from winning the nomination. Burbank has said she plans to drop out of the race as Nebraska Democrats rally around Dan Osborn, an independent who the party sees as the best chance of defeating Republican Sen. Pete Ricketts. If Burbank follows through, the general election would become a one-on-one matchup between the independent and the Republican incumbent.

A Tavern Research poll released in May found Ricketts trailing Osborn 47 percent to 42 percent when voters were presented with a head-to-head matchup. Polling shows a tight contest, and while Ricketts is leading, Osborn is raising more money.

The Legal Marijuana NOW Party primary, which Politico called the "weirdest race in America," features Mike Marvin, who is currently leading by 36 percentage points. Marvin has been accused by Starkey of being an Osborn "plant" who would also drop out of the general election if elected – which Marvin has denied.

The race has drawn national attention due to competing allegations of planted candidates and unusual campaign dynamics. Osborn had been working as a steamfitter at Grunwald Mechanical, an HVAC contractor in Omaha, while also running his second campaign for U.S. Senate as an independent, with his first campaign against Republican Sen. Deb Fischer nearly succeeding. Osborn has until August 3 to gather enough signatures to get on the November ballot.

## Sources

- [Nebraska Examiner](https://nebraskaexaminer.com/2026/05/12/burbank-wins-nebraska-dem-u-s-senate-primary-likely-giving-osborn-a-clearer-shot-against-ricketts/)
- [NBC News general election implications](https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/2026-election/democrats-nebraska-senate-primary-dan-osborn-pete-ricketts-rcna344474)
- [Newsweek analysis of race dynamics](https://www.newsweek.com/gop-senator-pete-ricketts-chances-of-losing-to-dan-osborn-in-nebraska-11940745)
- [American Prospect profile of Osborn](https://prospect.org/2026/05/04/dan-osborn-nebraska-senate-working-class-billionaire/)

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This article was generated by AI (claude-haiku-4-5-20251001) based on source material from Nebraska Examiner, enriched with 2 web searches. The original source is available at https://nebraskaexaminer.com/2026/05/12/burbank-wins-nebraska-dem-u-s-senate-primary-likely-giving-osborn-a-clearer-shot-against-ricketts/.