2018 NE-02nd Congressional Election

The 2018 NE 2nd Congressional election, a contest between progressive Stalwart Kara Eastman and Republican incumbent Don Bacon saw bacon narrowly win reelection in this Nebraska swing district durring the 2018 Blue wave midterm elections.

Here, after Bacon ousted incumbent Brad Ashford in 2016, Ashford sought a rematch. Standing in Ashford's way was Eastman, who—running as a staunch progressive—narrowly upset the former Democratic rep.

Following this, in the general election, Eastman campaigned as a staunch progressive—supporting Medicare for All, a $15 Minimum wage, while seeking to win by turning out Democrats, and presenting a 'true' choice to the electorate.

Beyond this, Eastman—whom national Democratic leaders were slow to embrace, & received little outside help (with a $1.7 Million cash advantage for Don Bacon by the end of the contest)—also attacked Bacon's record, especially for his vote to repeal the Affordable Care act as well as the 2017 Tax Cuts & Jobs act.

By contrast, Bacon sought to portray Eastman as a radical—focusing on her college years to attack her—while he focused on his millitary record instead of his support of GOP policies in his first congressional term.

The end result—where Eastman had regularly trailed in polling from mid-single to high single digits (trailing by R+9% in a September NYT Siena Poll)—was a surprisinly narrow R+2% win for Don Bacon, receiving a second term to a seat he would be reelected to thrice more.