New law could allow several candidates to vie for the late Sen. Rich Pahls’ seat

LINCOLN — A new state law could set up a scramble among several candidates to fill out the last two years of the legislative term of the late State Sen. Rich Pahls of Omaha.

Gov. Pete Ricketts will get to appoint someone from District 31 to fill the vacancy until just prior to the start of the 2023 legislative session in January.

But under a state law passed in 2017, any qualified candidate who collects at least 2,000 signatures from voters in the district will appear on the November election ballot. Voters will choose a winner to fill out the remainder of Pahl’s term, which runs until January 2025.

Wayne Bena, deputy Nebraska secretary of state for elections, said it’s the first time the law has been used since it was passed.

The law sets no limit on the number of candidates who can appear on the ballot, and since the position is nonpartisan, there’s no limit on candidates from any particular party.

Bena said prospective candidates can request petitions from the Secretary of State’s Office. Signatures, he said, must be turned in by Sept. 1.

Pahls, 78, died last week due to complications from cancer.

He was one of only a handful of state senators to return to the Legislature after being term-limited out of office. 

A longtime educator and former principal in the Millard School District, Pahls was first elected to the Legislature in 2004 and was re-elected in 2008. After being term-limited out of office, he was later elected to the Omaha City Council and served there until being elected to the Legislature again in  2020.

District 31 is generally bounded by 144th Street on the east, 192nd Street on the west, Harrison Street on the south and West Center Road on the north.