This rare Nebraska district backed Harris but sent a Republican to Congress. Can Democrats win here?

(AP) — “Do they still like Trump in Nebraska? I think so,” the president said during a recent event in Washington. Given that the state easily backed Republican Donald Trump three times and hasn’t supported a Democrat for the White House since Lyndon B.

Johnson in 1964, the answer may seem obvious. But in Nebraska’s largest city, it’s an open question and could decide one of the country’s most-watched congressional races. Don Bacon ’s open seat pits fellow Republican and Omaha City Councilmember Brinker Harding against Democratic activist Denise Powell.

The district encompasses an increasingly Democratic-leaning Omaha metro area of 1 million-plus and its more conservative suburbs — famous for steaks and the Reuben sandwich’s birthplace, though New York disputes that. It’s one of just eight districts nationwide that elected Republicans in House races while supporting Democratic presidential nominee Kamala Harris over Trump two years ago. Harding and Powell have been making the rounds at parades and festivals where meat raffles offer oversized sausages as prizes.

However, those on-the-ground appeals could be drowned out by Trump who, like most things in politics, has moved to shape November’s midterm elections in his own image. The president is organizing a Republican midterm convention in Dallas next month that will serve as much a two-day rally for him as a boon to party candidates nationwide. Trump is also frequently visiting tightly contested districts, despite his low approval ratings and the unpopular war in Iran.

While Trump centers himself, Democrats are happy to oblige. When Powell knocks on doors to talk to voters, she asks, “What’s keeping you up at night?” On a sweaty Saturday afternoon, John Rosseter responded without hesitation. “Well, Trump.” “I want to see the history books written years from now,” said Rosseter, 67, who owns a carpentry business.

“They won’t be pretty.” The ‘Blue Dot’ hasn’t helped Democratic House candidates Nebraska splits its presidential electoral votes, and the 2nd Congressional District’s delegate has gone to Democrats three out of five times since 2008, making it a “ blue dot ” in an otherwise Republican red state. But a Democrat has won the House seat just once since 1994. Harding plays up Trump’s primary endorsement, and House Speaker Mike Johnson and Majority Leader Steve Scalise campaigned…