Omaha’s Douglas County held its primary election on Tuesday, April 1. Elections in Omaha are nonpartisan, so party information is not printed on ballots. Therefore, the two candidates that received the most votes in the primaries will on the ballot for the general election, set for May 13.
The primary election includes the city council races along with the mayoral race. There is one city council seat for each of the seven districts.
The two nominees who will be on the ballot for the Mayoral race are Republican Jean Stothert and Democrat John W. Ewing.
The City Council nominees for district one are Pete Festersen and Mark Brannen. The nominees for the second district are Ben Gray and Lavonya Goodwin. The nominees for the third district are Danny Begley and Michael Pilypaitis. The nominees for the fourth disctrict are Ron Hug and Andrew Adams. The nominee for the fifth district is Don Rowe. The nominee for the sixth district is Brinker Harding. Finally, the nominees for the seventh district are Aimee Melton and Tim Carter.
The most highly contested district for the city council is District 2. The candidates are LaVonya Goodwin, Juanita Johnson, William King, Tyrone Eure, Ben Gray, Maurice Jones, Michael A. Lee, Jr., Anthony K. Rogers-Wright and Cheryl Weston.
LaVonya Goodwin’s platform centered around reducing gun violence and increasing public safety and youth engagement. She has done work with founding grassroots organizations that enhance neighborhoods and improve street conditions. In addition, she raised $15 million to support North Omaha businesses.
The next candidate is Juanita Johnson, the current District 2 representative for City Council. Johnson focuses on increasing access to jobs and tackling gaps in education. She has helped manage the progress of a COVID-19 resource guide.
William King is the CEO of Omaha Community Broadcasting. His nonprofit media company manages internet radio stations in the Omaha area. King focuses on addressing poverty in District 2 by working with local businesses to eventually encourage more hiring in the district.
Tyrone Eure emphasizes opportunity, community and unity. He hopes to build relationships between city officials and the general community. He also wants to create institutions that will tackle areas of need in the community. Finally, he wants to increase job opportunities for young people.
Ben Gray has focused his campaign on creating safe homes for the Omaha community, creating new job opportunities, keeping landlords accountable in their care for their properties, building mentorship programs for young people, focusing on mental health support to grow public safety and expanding transit routes.
Michael A. Lee Jr. worked on the creation of LB1024, the North and South Omaha Recovery Act, and helped the advancement of the Hair Discrimination Act. His priorities lie in affordable housing, economic opportunity, youth empowerment and community solutions, and police accountability.
Anthony K. Rogers-Wright has a focus on climate disruption and is an advocate for Environmental Justice.
Cheryl Weston is extremely vocal in community engagement. She has advocated for increasing voter turnout and community engagement outside of election season. She also has a focus on affordable public and private housing.
There are five candidates running for Omaha Mayor: John W. Ewing, Jr, Jean Stothert, Terry Brewer, Mike McDonnell and Jasmine L. Harris.
John W. Ewing Jr. is the current Douglas County Treasurer and served in the Omaha Police Department where he was the Deputy Chief. Ewing Jr. is focused on revamping the Omaha Police Department by improving officer training, attracting new businesses to Omaha, targeting the housing crisis, enhancing government transparency to Omaha residents and retaining young professionals.
“I have the vision to propel the city forward,” Ewing Jr. said on his campaign website.
Jean Stothert is the incumbent candidate. Stothert has a focus on continuing to invest in public safety. During her time as mayor, violent crime plummeted 21% in 2024. Stothert also has a focus on economic development and job growth. She has partnered with Front Porch Investments that creates and preserves affordable housing.
“With our robust growth, thriving job market, safer streets, solid finances and dynamic development, we stand as a beacon of excellence,” Stothert said on her campaign website.
Terry Brewer has his Ph.D. in public administration and served as a pastor and a Union Steward for Local 554. As mayor, Dr. Brewer hopes to launch “One Omaha” town halls and create a mayor’s council on unity which would address systemic inequities. He hopes to raise wages for college graduates. “Our vision for Omaha is rooted in unity, community and prosperity. It’s not just a political goal; it’s a spiritual one,” Brewer said in his campaign.
Mike McDonnell served as the Omaha Fire Chief for six years, currently represents District 5 in Nebraska Legislature and is the President of the Omaha Federation of Labor. He has a focus on reducing crime, repairing streets, prioritizing critical infrastructure to lower taxes and cleaning up communities. “Mike has consistently stood up for working families and fought for safer, stronger neighborhoods,” his campaign site said.
Finally, Jasmine L. Harris is the director of Public Policy and Advocacy at RISE. Harris hopes to create jobs and support small businesses, increase transparency in development projects, increase funding for after-school programs and focus on affordable housing. “There has been no better time for change in our city, and we need a mayor with a vision that includes all of us,” Harris said in her campaign.