1996 United States House of Representatives elections in Nebraska

1996 United States House of Representatives elections in Nebraska
November 5, 1996
All 3 Nebraska seats to the United States House of Representatives
  Majority party Minority party
 
Party Republican Democratic
Last election 3 0
Seats won 3 0
Seat change Steady Steady
Popular vote 450,067 204,432
Percentage 68.02% 30.90%

The 1996 United States House of Representatives elections in Nebraska were held on November 5, 1996, to elect the state of Nebraska's three members to the United States House of Representatives.

Overview

1996 United States House of Representatives elections in Nebraska[1]
Party Votes Percentage Seats +/–
Republican 450,067 68.02% 3 Steady
Democratic 204,432 30.90% 0 Steady
Natural Law 4,369 0.66% 0 —
Libertarian 1,921 0.29% 0 —
Write-ins 855 0.13% 0 —
Totals 661,644 100.00% 3 —

District 1

Incumbent Republican Congressman Doug Bereuter ran for re-election to a tenth term.[2] He was challenged by Lincoln radio talk show host Patrick Combs, the Democratic nominee, and won re-election in a landslide, receiving 70 percent of the vote to Combs's 30 percent.

Republican primary

Candidates

Results

Republican primary results[3]
Party Candidate Votes %
Republican Doug Bereuter (inc.) 52,914 99.03%
Republican Write-ins 516 0.97%
Total votes 53,430 100.00%

Democratic primary

Candidates

  • Patrick J. Combs, radio talk show host[4]
  • Marlin Pals, perennial candidate[4]

Results

Democratic primary results[3]
Party Candidate Votes %
Democratic Patrick J. Combs 24,725 82.25%
Democratic Marlin Pals 5,145 17.11%
Democratic Write-ins 192 0.64%
Total votes 30,062 100.00%

General election

Candidates

Results

1996 Nebraska's 1st congressional district general election results[1]
Party Candidate Votes %
Republican Doug Bereuter (inc.) 157,108 69.96%
Democratic Patrick J. Combs 67,152 29.90%
Write-ins 303 0.13%
Total votes 224,563 100.00%
Republican hold

District 2

Incumbent Republican Congressman Jon Christensen ran for re-election to a second term. He was challenged by attorney James Martin Davis, the Democratic nominee. Christiansen defeated Davis by a wide margin, receiving 57 percent of the vote to Davis's 40 percent.

Republican primary

Candidates

Results

Republican primary results[3]
Party Candidate Votes %
Republican Jon Christensen (inc.) 43,396 96.33%
Republican Write-ins 1,652 3.67%
Total votes 45,048 100.00%

Democratic primary

Candidates

  • James Martin Davis, attorney[5]
  • Jess M. Pritchett, perennial candidate[4]

Results

Democratic primary results[3]
Party Candidate Votes %
Democratic James Martin Davis 25,223 78.41%
Democratic Jess M. Pritchett 6,637 20.63%
Democratic Write-ins 307 0.95%
Total votes 32,167 100.00%

Libertarian primary

Candidates

  • Phillip E. Torrison

Results

Libertarian primary results[3]
Party Candidate Votes %
Libertarian Phillip E. Torrison 60 92.31%
Libertarian Write-ins 5 7.69%
Total votes 65 100.00%

General election

Candidates

  • Jon Christensen (Republican)
  • James Martin Davis (Democratic)
  • Patricia A. Dunn (Natural Law)
  • Phillip E. Torrison (Libertarian)

Results

1996 Nebraska's 2nd congressional district general election results[1]
Party Candidate Votes %
Republican Jon Christensen (inc.) 125,201 56.83%
Democratic James Martin Davis 88,447 40.14%
Natural Law Patricia A. Dunn 4,369 1.98%
Libertarian Phillip E. Torrison 1,921 0.87%
Write-ins 386 0.18%
Total votes 220,324 100.00%
Republican hold

District 3

Incumbent Republican Congressman Bill Barrett ran for re-election to fourth term. No candidates filed to run against him, and Barrett received the nominations of the Democratic Party and Libertarian Party by write-in votes, but declined both nominations. The Democratic Party subsequently named farmer John Webster as its nominee.[6] Barrett defeated Webster in a landslide, receiving 77 percent of the vote to Webster's 23 percent.

Republican primary

Candidates

Results

Republican primary results[3]
Party Candidate Votes %
Republican Bill Barrett (inc.) 65,874 99.64%
Republican Write-ins 237 0.36%
Total votes 66,111 100.00%

General election

Candidates

  • Bill Barrett (Republican)
  • John Webster (Democratic)

Results

1996 Nebraska's 3rd congressional district general election results[1]
Party Candidate Votes %
Republican Bill Barrett (inc.) 167,758 77.39%
Democratic John Webster 48,833 22.53%
Write-ins 166 0.08%
Total votes 216,757 100.00%
Republican hold

References

  1. ^ a b c d Scott Moore (1996). Official Report of the Board of State Canvassers of the State of Nebraska, General Election, November 5, 1996. Nebraska Secretary of State.
  2. ^ a b "1st District incumbent Bereuter seeking tenth term in House". Beatrice Daily Sun. February 5, 1996. p. A-2. Retrieved January 31, 2026 – via Newspapers.com.
  3. ^ a b c d e f Scott Moore (1996). Official Report of the Board of State Canvassers of the State of Nebraska, Primary Election, May 14, 1996. Nebraska Secretary of State.
  4. ^ a b c "Deadline brings final candidates". York News-Times. March 2, 1996. p. 1. Retrieved January 31, 2026 – via Newspapers.com.
  5. ^ Cordes, Henry J. (November 10, 1995). "Davis Enters '96 Campaign For Congress". Omaha World-Herald. p. 1. Retrieved January 31, 2026 – via Newspapers.com.
  6. ^ "Webster to face Barrett". Kearney Hub. July 11, 1996. p. 3A. Retrieved January 31, 2026 – via Newspapers.com.

See also

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