LINCOLN — Angela Unruh, a 39-year-old Lincoln resident, said she came to the Nebraska State Capitol on Saturday to remind protesters that everyone is human.
“We’re all humans, and we all matter … we’re not really trying to screw each other over, we just have totally different sources of information,” Unruh told the Examiner.
Saturday presented another iteration of the nationwide No Kings protests that have been planned throughout President Donald Trump’s second term. As before, signs opposing Trump were everywhere, with a couple hundred protesters in front of the Capitol. There were other protests across Nebraska.
The national organizer of these protests said this month’s rallies are meant to boost early voting. Despite national organizers’ attempt to give the event a “nonpartisan” feel, people who spoke to the Examiner said they hope to put a check on President Donald Trump in the upcoming midterm.
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Unruh said she plans to cast her early ballot soon, and her top issues are women’s rights, healthcare and immigration enforcement.
Jim Cummings, a 70-year-old Lincoln resident, said his top issues are Ukraine and the Iran war.
“I really think democracy is threatened. … Congress is supposed to stand up to the abuses of the president; this one doesn’t,” Cummings said.
Republicans are facing headwinds this November; the party in the White House typically doesn’t do well in midterm elections. Democrats are bullish on their chances of taking both the U.S. House and Senate. In Nebraska, several races are viewed as competitive, including the Senate and 2nd Congressional District races. In the last few weeks, the race for governor and the 1st Congressional District race have drawn attention from election analysts as the political environment worsens for Republicans.
In Omaha, demonstrators lined N 52nd Street and the NW Radial Highway. Like the rally in Lincoln, they waved hand-crafted signs opposing Trump and Nebraska Republican elected officials – with volunteers handing out Blue Dot and Blue Wave signs.
Local community activists gave speeches to the crowd gathered in Gallagher Park. A vendor village in Gallagher Park hosted organizations like the Omaha Metro Area Humanist Association, Coalition of Citizens Concerned for Democracy and the Democratic Socialists of America.
Alyssa Price, A 24-year-old student at Creighton University School of Medicine, said she will vote in person.
Price said having people in office who care about “healthcare and proper education around people’s rights” is top of mind ahead of the midterms.
Cady Nielsen, A 25-year-old Bellevue resident, said she is “really frustrated with how this current administration is handling things.” Nielsen said she wants to “stand up for people that might be getting discriminated [against] or anything like that.”
John Stochl, a 70-year-old Benson resident, already voted by early ballot. Stochl, who is a veteran of the Vietnam War, said his top issue ahead of the midterms is “a general paintbrush of civil rights.”
“I came here because I have a grandson and I want him to grow up in a non-fascist society,” Stochl said. “I want my daughter to have her rights. I want people of all makes, models, colors, religions, belief systems to be on equal terms.”
Stochl added that people should know they are not alone in being “oppressed” or “discriminated against.”
“Everyone here is here for a reason. It may not all be that same reason; that’s the nice thing,” he told the Examiner.
Back in Lincoln, Nancy Brt, a 70-year-old Lincoln resident, said she is “shocked” that Trump has gotten so far. Brt said she is part of a group that protests around Lincoln weekly.
“It feels good to be around people that agree with you,” Brt said.
Her top issue is the Senate race, Brt said, adding that she wants Dan Osborn to beat incumbent Republican Sen. Pete Ricketts. Osborn and Ricketts are in a heated race that has seen Trump rally for Ricketts in Grand Island, and Republicans are putting Osborn in the political crosshairs, trying to cast doubt on his independence, since he will need some Republican support to pull off his prairie upset.
When asked how she thinks the election will go this November, Unruh said people have to “handle what we’re given.”
“So I don’t know that I feel very optimistic, but I also don’t feel terrified,” Unruh said. “I think that the worst-case scenario rarely happens, and we live somewhere in the middle…so we just have to do whatever’s handed to us to the best of our ability.”
The general election is Nov. 3. Early voting has already started.
Chase Zagurski contributed to this report.
This story is provided by States Newsroom, a nonprofit state news network and Blox Digital content partner.
