Omaha-area retired eye surgeon Mark Johnston said he’s stepping back from his run for Congress. (Courtesy of Mark Johnston)
OMAHA — The Democratic primary race in Nebraska 2nd Congressional District got less crowded Wednesday.
Mark Johnston, 69, told the Nebraska Examiner this week that he has withdrawn from the race for the Democratic nomination to represent the Omaha area in Congress.
Johnston said he lacks the infrastructure to raise funds and feels Democrats have an “extremely good chance” of winning the open seat with the number of candidates running.
“Given the fact that this race has heated up very quickly … it’s going to be a very crowded field and a very high money field.”
In the latest federal fundraising reports, newcomer Denise Powell led, raising nearly half a million dollars. State Sen. John Cavanaugh of Omaha, another high-profile candidate in the Democratic primary, raised $130,341.
Douglas County District Court Clerk Crystal Rhoades, who announced her bid in mid-July, discussed no specifics, but said she is “feeling good” about her fundraising.
Retired Navy veteran Kishla Askins says she has raised $175,000 over the past two weeks, according to Danielle Salanitri, Askins’ campaign manager.
Johnston reported raising $6,976.58 and listed $1,628.31 in cash on hand, according to the latest fundraising report. The retired eye surgeon said campaigning was pretty new to him, but he has been active in the state Democratic Party as a volunteer. Johnston told the Omaha World-Herald previously that he had volunteered for Democratic congressional and presidential campaigns.
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Johnston said he enjoyed having meetings with people in the district and having “great conversations.” He said he plans to help any way he can to make sure Democrats can win the seat being vacated by U.S. Rep. Don Bacon, R-Neb.
Two Republicans are vying to replace the retiring Bacon as the GOP nominee, State Sen. Brett Lindstrom of Omaha, a former GOP gubernatorial candidate from 2022, and Omaha City Council Vice President Brinker Harding.
The 2nd District includes all of Douglas and Saunders Counties and a significant slice of western suburban and rural Sarpy County. The district includes the state’s largest concentration of Democrats and was redistricted to include a larger swath of Republican-leaning rural voters in Wahoo and surrounding areas.
National political observers view the Omaha-area House seat as a possible pickup for Democrats, although the district retains a slight GOP lean. Many pundits expect the 2nd District race to be one of the more competitive races in Congress in the 2026 midterms, with potential impact on which party controls the House of Representatives.
Johnston, who said Democrats have a “very good field” of candidates, won’t be endorsing anyone right now. The Democratic primary had already lost another candidate in July, when Evangelos Argyrakis switched his party registration. At least one more Democrat has been rumored to be joining the race.
“I’m excited to have been part of that process,” Johnston said. “I’m excited where this process is going to go because this excitement is going to take us all the way to Congress.”
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