185,194 ballots cast in Nebraska
As of October 28, 2026, 185,194 ballots have been cast in Nebraska: 153,041 by mail and 32,153 in person. Registered Democrats cast 39.7% of them and registered Republicans 43.4%. See the Nebraska Senate forecast, and on election night the live Nebraska election results.
Clear signal for the independent in the Nebraska Senate race
Where the party lead of the early vote has to be by now for each side to beat the On Point forecast by a lot or to prove the favorite wrong, and how far each side is from it.
| For this result | Early vote needs | It is | Gap |
|---|---|---|---|
| The independent beat the forecast by 5race lands I +6.2 | D +12.0 | R +3.7 | 15.6 short |
| Republicans beat the forecast by 5race lands R +3.8 | R +29.7 | R +3.7 | 26.1 short |
| Republicans flip the racerace lands Even | R +13.8 | R +3.7 | 10.2 short |
| Matches the best independent poll, Concord Public Opinion Partners for Education Reform Now Advocacy (D)race lands I +4.1 | D +3.5 | R +3.7 | 7.1 short |
| Matches the best Republican poll, Impact Research for Osborn (D)race lands R +4.0 | R +30.5 | R +3.7 | 26.8 short |
If the early vote ends where it is pointing, Ricketts needs Election Day voters to break R +17.0 to win, 3.6 points redder than the R +13.3 the forecast expects of them. With the forecast holding, Election Day lands near R +15.2.
Benchmarks assume the rest of the early vote keeps the gap seen so far and Election Day votes as the forecast expects. Party is registration where Nebraska publishes it and the On Point party model where it does not. Crossover rates are On Point Polling likely voters nationwide. The forecast builds the early vote into the electorate it simulates, so this read is a check against the forecast, not an addition to it. Polls of the last 30 days leave out Rasmussen, ActiVote and Wedgewood, as the site average does.
The electorate of the 0 ballots cast in Nebraska
Every ballot cast so far, by the voters behind it: the forecast’s own 2026 electorate, split by who votes by mail, early in person or on Election Day, set to each county's live count and party split. Compare it with the whole electorate the forecast expects by Election Day.
How it works: every county starts from the 1,152 voter types the forecast simulates in it, by age, race, college, party, 2022 and 2024 vote history and Trump approval, each with its chance of voting. A model of On Point Polling likely voters gives each type its chance of voting by mail, early in person or on Election Day under the state’s ballot rules, and respondents add the share of women in each type and how many of the 2018 and 2020 elections it voted in. Those mixes are set to the ballots each county has actually cast by mail and in person, and to its party split, reported or modeled. Where a state publishes early voters by age, race or gender, that dimension follows the state’s count. These are estimates, not voter file counts.
Party registration of the voters who cast these ballots. It is not how they voted.
Every Nebraska county
0 counties| County | Ballots | In person | Democrats | Republicans | Lead | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Loading counties | ||||||
Early vote questions
How many people have voted early in Nebraska?
As of October 28, 2026, 185,194 ballots have been cast in Nebraska: 153,041 mail ballots returned and 32,153 cast in person. Voters have requested 244,349 mail ballots.
Does Nebraska report early votes by party?
Yes. Of the ballots cast so far, registered Democrats have cast 39.7% of these ballots, Republicans 43.4% and independents and third parties 16.9%. Party registration shows who has voted, not how they voted.
When is Election Day in Nebraska?
Election Day is Tuesday, November 3, 2026, 6 days after the latest count. Check the Nebraska election office for early voting locations, hours and mail ballot deadlines.
Counts come from civicAPI, which collects them from state election offices. Each state reports on its own schedule and publishes different breakdowns, so a state with no party split simply does not publish one. Pace uses each state's published 2022 and 2024 early vote checkpoints.