Former State Sen. Tony Vargas endorses Denise Powell in Nebraska's 2nd District
Denise Powell at her campaign event on June 4, 2025. (Courtesy of Denise Powell for Congress)
LINCOLN — Former Omaha State Sen. Tony Vargas has endorsed nonprofit co-founder and business owner Denise Powell in her bid for Nebraska's 2nd Congressional District.
The endorsement comes a day after Omaha State Sen. John Cavanaugh declared his candidacy for the seat on Wednesday, the same day Powell hosted a campaign kick-off event.
The Vargas endorsement also followed Cavanaugh saying he has a 'stronger record of being a leader in the Legislature' than Vargas.
Vargas, a Democrat who represented South Omaha in the Legislature and on the Omaha Public Schools board, narrowly lost twice to U.S. Rep. Don Bacon, R-Neb., with the 2024 margin being less than two percentage points.
'Denise's leadership and proven record of bringing people together to solve our toughest problems is why I'm proud to support her campaign for Congress,' Vargas said.
Powell said she wants to build on the energy and enthusiasm Vargas brought to his House races.
'It is a tremendous honor to have the support of a dedicated public servant, leader and friend like Tony Vargas,' Powell said.
Powell already has secured endorsements from some Cavanaugh colleagues in the Legislature from Omaha's State Sens. Margo Juarez and Dunixi Guereca, and other elected officials in the district, which includes all of Douglas and Saunders Counties and parts of suburban Sarpy County. Cavanaugh's new campaign has yet to announce any endorsements.
Powell and Cavanaugh are the two highest-profile Democratic candidates in the race so far. Also running are Mark Johnston and Evangelos Argyrakis.
Powell is running as an outsider, but she has the support of some top local Democratic donors from her time leading the nonpartisan nonprofit Women Who Run, a group that encouraged more women to consider running for office and equipped them with the tools to do so.
Cavanaugh is part of a local political dynasty, seeking to follow his father into the same 2nd District seat he held in the late 1970s. His sister, State Sen. Machaela Cavanaugh, serves in the Legislature alongside him.
In her statement responding to Cavanaugh's announcement, Powell didn't mention the senator by name but said, 'Nebraskans deserve better than lip service from career politicians.'
'I'm running to bring courage and common sense back to DC,' Powell said in the statement.
She also received the endorsement from Square One Politics, a group focused on recruiting and discovering young, diverse, progressive candidates. Vargas became the group's executive director earlier this year.
Whoever emerges from the 2026 Democratic primary will have to navigate Nebraska's most politically divided and diverse district, with a slight GOP tilt.
National and state Democrats have been using the recent Omaha mayoral race as evidence of growing voter 'energy' against President Donald Trump and political fuel for the congressional midterms.
Bacon has said both Democrats are too progressive to represent a purple district. Republicans are waiting on Bacon to decide whether to run again. Bacon has said he would announce this summer whether he would retire from Congress.
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