Nebraska Governor Pete Ricketts now has a challenger in his bid for re-election next year. Wednesday morning, State Senator Bob Krist officially announced his bid for Governor.
Krist has served in the legislature since being appointed by former Governor Dave Heineman in 2009 as a Republican, but that is changing. Krist has changed his political affiliation, and will run for Governor as an Independent.
The state senator says he feels that he can better bring people together as a third party candidate. "One of the reasons I made this decision in running as an independent party to be named, is that I think that the gridlock that is happening in Washington D.C. is something that I want to avoid."
Krist said he also felt opposition from the GOP, furthering his want to be a bipartisan candidate. "It's been nine years of a love/hate relationship between the Republican Party and me and I think they've tried to censor me, or take my card away several times. So I think the best thing for me to do, is maintain my independence."
Krist is currently Ricketts' only challenger, as no other Republican or Democrat has filed to be put on the 2018 ballot.