OMAHA, Neb. (AP) – Former U.S. Senator and Nebraska governor Bob Kerrey has found himself in the middle of a tug-of-war between Democrats desperate for him to run for Nebraska’s U.S. Senate seat this year and Republicans just as eager for him to stay out.
Kerrey announced earlier this month that he’s mulling a run to replace U.S. Sen. Ben Nelson, who is not seeking a third term this year.
Since then, Nebraska’s airwaves have been crowded with radio and television ads by conservative groups attacking Kerrey as a liberal and carpetbagger who should stay in New York, where he’s lived for the past decade.
Conservative groups say Nebraska voters need to know what they’d be getting with Kerrey. State Democrats say the ad blitz shows Republicans are afraid of a Kerrey run.