By Juan Salinas II, Nebraska Examiner
Lincoln, NE — Nonpartisan U.S. Senate candidate Dan Osborn raised $762,000 in the last quarter of 2025, bringing his campaign total for last year to more than $2 million, his team told the Examiner.
While fundraising reports are still being finalized with the Federal Election Commission, Osborn had 11,857 individual donors in the last quarter, with an average contribution of roughly $37, the campaign says. The Osborn camp says the numbers show the former labor leader is running a “stronger campaign” than his closer-than-expected loss to U.S. Sen Deb Fischer, R-Neb., in 2024.
Osborn, who has said he is not accepting donations from corporate political action committees but from union PACs, said his campaign is being “backed by working-class people.”
Osborn is currently in a heated campaign against Nebraska Republican U.S. Sen. Pete Ricketts. Osborn gained national attention for his 2024 bid against Fischer, who beat him by six percentage points in a state where Republicans outnumber Democrats roughly 2 to 1, and nonpartisans make up a growing share of the electorate.
“Pete Ricketts is a billionaire whose war chest will be bankrolled by deep-pocketed corporate interests,” Osborn said. “We have always known that. We have the people behind us, we will always outwork him, and that’s why we will win this U.S. Senate seat.”
Nebraska U.S. Sen. Pete Ricketts, R-Neb., listens during his event at the Washington County Fairgrounds. Oct. 19, 2025. (Juan Salinas II/Nebraska Examiner)
Ricketts and his team are trying to paint Osborn as a “fake independent,” pointing to him having received donations and support from Democrats and using fundraising infrastructure often used by Democrats. They’ve also criticized him for paying himself and his wife using campaign funds, which is legal but often comes at a political price.
Will Coup, Ricketts campaign spokesperson, said Osborn is releasing his topline numbers to “avoid scrutiny of what’s actually in his report.”
“Did Osborn continue self-dealing by paying thousands of dollars to a shell company owned by his wife? Did he accept even more funding from Elizabeth Warren and members of the Soros family?” Coup said. “Once again, Fake Dan Osborn is trying to hide his self-dealing, his donors, and his liberal policies from Nebraskans.”
The general election is Nov. 3.
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