Nebraska 1st-District Congressman Jeff Fortenberry will likely be facing two opponents in the 2022 election.
One is a progressive Democratic lawmaker from Lincoln with a lot of support in the state’s second-largest city while the other is a federal prosecutor in California who has charged him with lying to the FBI.
State Senator Patty Pansing Brooks announced her candidacy on Monday, acknowledging it will be “a tough race,” but saying she has “an ability to make friends on all sides of the aisle.”
Her announcement comes as Fortenberry, the 9-term Republican incumbent, faces federal charges that could send him to prison and cost him his retirement benefits.
Fortenberry has pleaded not guilty and vowed to fight the charges in court. His trial is set for next month, but he’s asked for a 2-month delay to Feb 15 to give his defense team more time to prepare and prosecutors aren’t opposing the motion.