OMAHA, Nebraska (AP) — Voters in Omaha are not just deciding the city’s mayor, but whether a Democrat who opposes abortion rights can give the party some hope in the conservative heartland.

Democrats around the country have focused on their party’s candidate Heath Mello, some looking to the 37-year-old former state senator as an independent future party leader and others shaking their heads at his anti-abortion record.

In that way, the election Tuesday in this mid-sized Midwestern city has become a symbol for the out-of-power party’s struggle for the way forward after crushing defeat across the country last year.

Mello faces incumbent Republican Jean Stothert, a 63-year-old Republican elected in 2013.