Senate Seat Showdowns

Nebraska CBS NEWS PROJECTS BEN NELSONWINNER Democrat Ben Nelson (Incumbent) vs. Republican J. Peter Rickets CBS News Race Outlook: This race heated up as both candidates went on the offensive with a series of attack ads. But Nelson, a conservative Democrat, is popular even though this is an overwhelmingly Republican state. After Georgia Sen. Zell Miller retired, Nelson became the Democrat most likely to support President Bush. Nelson dubbed the race Main Street vs. Wall Street, trying to tag Ricketts as corporate. But Ricketts, who grew up in Nebraska City, fought the corporate image by running ads about his Nebraska values, including some homespun moments featuring his mother telling him not to forget to put on his hat. In at least two ads, he pulled down a bright Nebraska red knit stocking cap over his head after his mother’s prompting. Ricketts spent $5 million of his own money in the Republican primary, upsetting Don Stenberg, who lost in 2000 to Nelson by just 2 percentage points or about 15,000 votes. Ricketts attempted to tie Nelson to prominent and controversial Democratic leaders like Hillary Clinton and Ted Kennedy, while Nelson’s camp tried to paint Ricketts as tax-friendly. The race was on track to be the most expensive in state history.