Nebraska Could Elect First Democratic Woman to Congress; Change Unlikely in West Virginia

Primary elections were held on Tuesday in Nebraska and West Virginia. Full results for women candidates in federal and statewide executive races are available on this post on our Election Analysis page; there are two undecided races featuring women candidates from yesterday's primaries, so this post will be updated as those contests are decided.

Among the most notable results for women:
 

Nebraska

• Cindy Burbank (D) won the Democratic nomination for U.S. Senate in Nebraska but has already said that she will drop out of the contest before the general election to provide a path to election for independent candidate Dan Osborn to challenge incumbent U.S. Senator Pete Ricketts (R). No Democratic woman has served in the U.S. Senate from Nebraska. 
• Women currently hold 0 of 3 (0%) seats in the Nebraska delegation to the U.S. House. The best chance for electing a woman to the U.S. House from Nebraska is in the 2nd Congressional District, where Denise Powell (D) is leading in the Democratic primary election that remains too close to call. This contest to replace Republican incumbent Don Bacon – who is retiring from Congress – is currently rated as “Lean Democrat” by Cook Political Report. Another Democratic woman nominee – Becky Stille (D) – is challenging incumbent Adrian Smith (R) in a House contest currently rated as “Solid Republican.” If either woman is successful, they would be the first Democratic woman to serve in Congress from Nebraska.
• Women are 3 of 9 (33.3%) major-party nominees for statewide elective executive office in Nebraska, including 3 of 4 (75%) Democrats and 0 of 5 (0%) Republicans. All Democratic women nominees, including gubernatorial nominee Lynne Walz (D), are challenging incumbent officeholders.

West Virginia

• Incumbent Shelley Moore Capito (R) will run for re-election in an all-woman general election contest for U.S. Senate against Rachel Fetty Anderson (D) in West Virginia. The contest is currently rated as “Solid Republican” by Cook Political Report. Find out more about all-woman congressional and gubernatorial races, both in 2026 and historically, here.
• Women’s representation in the U.S. House from West Virginia is unlikely to change as a result of this year’s elections. Incumbent Carol Miller (R) will run for re-election in November in a contest currently rated as “Solid Republican” by Cook Political Report. Another woman candidate is in a Democratic primary contest that remains too close to call in West Virginia’s 2nd Congressional District, which is currently rated as “Solid Republican” by Cook Political Report.

For more information, see the full analysis of how women fared in yesterday's contests on our Election Analysis page. Complete context about women in the 2026 elections can be found on CAWP's Election Watch.