Bacon, Republican Nebraska Rep., wins tight race for Omaha-based 2nd Congressional district // Republican Rep. Don Bacon is back in a tight race to keep the Omaha-based 2nd Congressional District. This district is usually Nebraska’s only competitive U.S. House District and one that the GOP has attempted to tighten its grip on through redistricting. On Tuesday, Bacon will face Tony Vargas, a Democrat from Omaha, who is running for state lawmaker. Vargas has cited his experience as a former teacher, and member of Omaha Public Schools Board. Bacon won the seat by defeating an incumbent Democrat. He had to work hard to re-elect Kara Eastman twice, each time beating him. Bacon, a former Air Force brigadier-general and conservative voter, was criticized by former President Donald Trump for backing an infrastructure bill that was supported by Democrats. HTML2_ MIDTERM ELUTIONS 2022: LIVE UPDATE The Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee ranked the district as one its most competitive House districts that are either open to Republicans or held by Republicans. Bacon has dropped most of the campaign ads that he used to love, which played on his name. They featured jokes about Bacon “bringing home Bacon” and “who doesn’t love Bacon?” Instead, he turned to ads calling Vargas “Taxing Tony.” Republicans have twice redrawn the boundaries of their districts to aid their party’s candidates. This is partly because of embarrassment at the fact that Barack Obama, the Democratic presidential candidate, won a 2nd district vote in 2008 under Nebraska’s unusual Electoral College rules. Joe Biden did it in 2020. Maine is the only state that allows its electoral votes be split between candidates. NEBRASKA GOV SPENT OVER $1.3M BOSTING GOP GUBERNATORIAL CANANDATE WHO MAY APPOINT HIM US SENATOR 2011 saw the Republicans rededicate the district’s boundaries to include more conservative suburbs in Sarpy County and cleave off suburban Bellevue. In 2021, GOP lawmakers attempted a similar move but faced with Democratic opposition, they were able to make the district slightly more conservative as Biden would still have won the election had the boundaries been redrawn. The Republicans were expected to have a less difficult time controlling the two other congressional districts in Nebraska. The Republican Rep. Mike Flood was preferred to Democratic challenger Patty Pansing Brooks in the 1st district, which includes Lincoln and all or a part of a dozen other counties in eastern Nebraska. This race was a rematch from the special election between the two earlier in the year, in which Flood was elected as the replacement for Jeff Fortenberry who was convicted of campaign finance violations. WHILE HAS FIRM HOLDED ON THE NEBRASKA STATE GOVERNMENT, DEMS LOOK FOR SOME DISTRICTS The 3rd District, which is largely rural and covers about three-fourths the state, was home to eight-term Republican Rep. Adrian Smith. He defeated a challenge by Democrat David Else.