US Sen. Pete Ricketts faces ‘long-shot’ opponent in Nebraska’s 2-year Senate race [Video]

In a special election widely considered uncompetitive, incumbent U.S. Sen. Pete Ricketts is favored over civil rights activist and 2020 Senate write-in candidate Preston Love Jr.

Love, who has compared the race to the biblical battle between David and Goliath, said his travels around Nebraska convinced him that a victory — or at least a close race — may be possible. Those potential paths to victory don’t appear to concern Ricketts, who has declined to debate Love and spent little money on the general election campaign.

The winning candidate will finish out the term of former U.S. Sen. Ben Sasse, who left his position in 2022 for a brief tenure as the president of the University of Florida. Ricketts, who was appointed by Nebraska Gov. Jim Pillen to fill Sasse’s seat last year, has said he will seek a full six-year Senate term in 2026.

Though Ricketts has been in Nebraska politics for more than a decade, the …