{"id":3359,"date":"2026-09-02T11:18:19","date_gmt":"2026-09-02T11:18:19","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/modernhomejournals.com\/?p=3359"},"modified":"2026-09-02T11:18:19","modified_gmt":"2026-09-02T11:18:19","slug":"heres-how-republicans-are-running-campaigns-against-independent-candidates","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/modernhomejournals.com\/?p=3359","title":{"rendered":"Here\u2019s How Republicans Are Running Campaigns Against Independent Candidates"},"content":{"rendered":"<div>\n<div>\n<\/div>\n<div>\n<p>Republicans have a simple strategy for how to campaign against a slate of independent candidates running for Senate seats in red states: Take every opportunity to tie them to Democrats.<\/p><p>Read more <a href=\"https:\/\/modernhomejournals.com\/?p=3357\">Interior Department Staff Are Fearing a Major Agency Shakeup<\/a><\/p><p>In Nebraska, South Dakota, Idaho and Montana, Republican Senate candidates are running against independents who have held the Democratic Party at arm\u2019s length in order to make competitive runs. These are states where Democratic candidates have flopped in recent years.<\/p>\n<p>Now Democrats are making the case that the independents \u2014 who they hope would caucus with their party, even as some of them have said <span><u>they would not<\/u><\/span> \u2014 stand a chance of defeating Republicans because of the current political environment.<\/p><p>\u201cIf the Democrats are calling me a Republican, and the Republicans are calling me a Democrat, I\u2019m doing something right. So that\u2019s what I\u2019m going with,\u201d Brian Bengs, the independent running against Republican Sen. Mike Rounds in South Dakota, told NOTUS.<\/p>\n<section>\n<div>\n<h2>\n<span>Trending<\/span>\n<\/h2>\n<\/div>\n<div>\n<div>\n<ul>\n<li>\n<div>\n<div>\n<div>\n<div>\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\">\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-medium_large\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" alt=\"Mike Johnson House GOP 9\/1\/26\" class=\"wp-image-3355\" height=\"512\" src=\"https:\/\/modernhomejournals.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/09\/21996ddce58cd0a42cdd5f90acf8f287-768x512.jpg\" width=\"768\" srcset=\"https:\/\/modernhomejournals.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/09\/21996ddce58cd0a42cdd5f90acf8f287-768x512.jpg 768w, https:\/\/modernhomejournals.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/09\/21996ddce58cd0a42cdd5f90acf8f287-300x200.jpg 300w, https:\/\/modernhomejournals.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/09\/21996ddce58cd0a42cdd5f90acf8f287.jpg 1024w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 768px) 100vw, 768px\" \/><\/figure>\n<\/figure>\n\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div><h3>\n<span>\n<u>Dana Milbank:<\/u> The Only Thing Mike Johnson\u2019s House Is Good at Doing Is Wrongdoing\n                    <\/span>\n<\/h3><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/li>\n<li>\n<div>\n<div>\n<div>\n<div>\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\">\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-medium_large\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" alt=\"Burgum\" class=\"wp-image-3118\" height=\"506\" src=\"https:\/\/modernhomejournals.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/d7b533497f5a2b88073ac38e5e25d585-768x506.jpg\" width=\"768\" srcset=\"https:\/\/modernhomejournals.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/d7b533497f5a2b88073ac38e5e25d585-768x506.jpg 768w, https:\/\/modernhomejournals.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/d7b533497f5a2b88073ac38e5e25d585-300x198.jpg 300w, https:\/\/modernhomejournals.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/d7b533497f5a2b88073ac38e5e25d585.jpg 1024w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 768px) 100vw, 768px\" \/><\/figure>\n<\/figure>\n\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div><h3>\n<span>\n                      Trump Is Quietly Working to Give Part of Yosemite to a Private Developer\n                    <\/span>\n<\/h3><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/li>\n<li>\n<div>\n<div>\n<div>\n<div>\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\">\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-medium_large\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" alt=\"Rep. Seth Moulton\" class=\"wp-image-3324\" height=\"512\" src=\"https:\/\/modernhomejournals.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/09\/aaae154813f4a2b953465b7db168e598-768x512.jpg\" width=\"768\" srcset=\"https:\/\/modernhomejournals.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/09\/aaae154813f4a2b953465b7db168e598-768x512.jpg 768w, https:\/\/modernhomejournals.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/09\/aaae154813f4a2b953465b7db168e598-300x200.jpg 300w, https:\/\/modernhomejournals.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/09\/aaae154813f4a2b953465b7db168e598.jpg 1024w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 768px) 100vw, 768px\" \/><\/figure>\n<\/figure>\n\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div><h3>\n<span>\n                      Democrats Think Seth Moulton\u2019s Failures Are a Warning for 2028 Candidates\n                    <\/span>\n<\/h3><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/li>\n<li>\n<div>\n<div>\n<div>\n<div>\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\">\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-medium_large\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" alt=\"U.S. Congress\" class=\"wp-image-3330\" height=\"512\" src=\"https:\/\/modernhomejournals.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/09\/6bd918ba57ef434f50a7acc4c1a66349-768x512.jpg\" width=\"768\" srcset=\"https:\/\/modernhomejournals.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/09\/6bd918ba57ef434f50a7acc4c1a66349-768x512.jpg 768w, https:\/\/modernhomejournals.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/09\/6bd918ba57ef434f50a7acc4c1a66349-300x200.jpg 300w, https:\/\/modernhomejournals.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/09\/6bd918ba57ef434f50a7acc4c1a66349.jpg 1024w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 768px) 100vw, 768px\" \/><\/figure>\n<\/figure>\n\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div><h3>\n<span>\n                      Democrats Are Fuming at Two Moderates Who Helped Bail Out Republicans\n                    <\/span>\n<\/h3><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/section>\n<p>Republicans, however, believe the Democratic Party\u2019s brand is noxious enough that they can effectively beat the independent candidates just by continuing to point out how Democrats are embracing them.<\/p><p>That\u2019s how it\u2019s playing out in Nebraska, where Republican Sen. Pete Ricketts is vying against independent Dan Osborn.<\/p><p>\u201cOur approach is straightforward: expose the truth about Dan Osborn\u2019s far-left views and the Democrat infrastructure behind his campaign,\u201d Ricketts\u2019 deputy campaign manager, Max Oberg, told NOTUS in a statement.<\/p><p>\u201c[Democrats] know their brand is so toxic in these states that they\u2019re just going to try to put a false label on progressive candidates,\u201d Oberg added.<\/p>\n<p>Republicans are pointing out that some Democrats, like Cindy Burbank in Nebraska, David Roth in Idaho and Julian Beaudion in South Dakota, dropped out of their races to allow the independent candidates in their states the opportunity to consolidate voting blocs.<\/p><p>\u201cThere were two Democrat candidates in the race, and now there is one,\u201d Sen. James Risch of Idaho told the <span><u>Idaho State Journal<\/u><\/span> in a statement, after Roth dropped out of the race to pave the way for independent candidate Todd Achilles. \u201cIdaho remains one of the most Republican states in the nation, and I am proud to consistently deliver conservative votes for our state.\u201d<\/p><p>The Democratic nominee in Montana did not withdraw <span><u>despite mounting calls to drop out<\/u><\/span> to allow a two-way race between the Republican candidate and independent Seth Bodnar.<\/p><p>The Republican campaigns have also pointed to some of the independents\u2019 presence on ActBlue, a Democratic fundraising platform; <span><u>Osborn<\/u><\/span>, <span><u>Bengs<\/u><\/span> and <span><u>Bodnar<\/u><\/span> have all used it to raise money. On its site, ActBlue says it allows independent candidates on a \u201ccase-by-case basis\u201d if they meet criteria the platform has <span><u>set up.<\/u><\/span><\/p><p>Osborn has raised more than $5.7 million as of June 30, Federal Election Commission <span><u>records show.<\/u><\/span> At that point during his 2024 run <span><u>against Republican Sen. Deb Fischer<\/u><\/span>, in which he ran as an independent, <span><u>Osborn had raised around $1.6 million<\/u><\/span>. The boost in fundraising suggests growing interest in his race this cycle since he came <span><u>within 7 percentage points of Fischer two years ago.<\/u><\/span><\/p><p>Bengs has raised more than $780,000 as an independent <span><u>as of June 30<\/u><\/span> \u2014 an approximately $630,000 jump from what he raised in the same period in 2022, when he ran as a Democrat <span><u>against now-Senate Majority Leader John Thune<\/u><\/span>, according to <span><u>FEC records<\/u><\/span>.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cBengs is out there using ActBlue and the Democrat machine to raise money, which should also tell everyone that he\u2019s a Democrat,\u201dRob Skjonsberg, a senior campaign adviser to Rounds, told NOTUS.<\/p><p>Read more <a href=\"https:\/\/modernhomejournals.com\/?p=3351\">Abdul El-Sayed Explains Why He Apologized for His Statement on a Synagogue Attack<\/a><\/p><p>Still, most of the Republicans have outraised their opponents by millions. As of June, 30 <span><u>Ricketts raised more than $11.4 million<\/u><\/span>; <span><u>Risch more than $4 million<\/u><\/span>; and <span><u>Rounds more than $4.5 million<\/u><\/span>.<\/p><p>Republicans are leaning on referring to the independents as democratic socialists and associating them with the views of progressives running elsewhere, calling them \u201cfake independents.\u201d It\u2019s reflective of their broader playbook against Democratic candidates.<\/p><p>\u201cDan Osborn, Brian Bengs, Todd Achilles, and Seth Bodnar would work in lockstep with the toxic socialist Democrats to enact their woke agenda and raise taxes for American working families,\u201d Bernadette Breslin, who serves as national press secretary for the National Republican Senatorial Committee \u2014 Senate Republicans\u2019 campaign arm \u2014 told NOTUS in a statement.<\/p><p>Democrats would have to flip a net of four seats in order to take control of the Senate.<\/p><p>Osborn, a navy veteran running to unseat Ricketts in Nebraska, is seen by political analysts as having the best shot of the independents. Although he has the endorsement of labor groups <span><u>often associated with Democrats<\/u><\/span> such as the United Auto Workers union, he also <span><u>supports cutting federal spending.<\/u><\/span><\/p>\n<p>In April, the Cook Political Report <span><u>moved<\/u><\/span> the Nebraska Senate race from solid Republican to likely Republican.<\/p><p>\u201cIf voters are convinced that this is a politician who is not going to be tethered to either party in a state like Nebraska and a year like 2026, yeah, Dan Osborn has a real shot,\u201d Jim Kessler, the executive vice president for policy at Third Way, a \u201ccenter left\u201d think tank, told NOTUS.<\/p><p>Candidates like Osborn are making sure to keep their distance from Democrats. Although Nebraska Democratic Party Chair Jane Kleeb <span><u>said on X the party supported Osborn<\/u><\/span>, he told <span><u>CNN<\/u><\/span> on Aug. 23 he planned \u201con remaining an independent.\u201d<\/p><p>Osborn\u2019s campaign did not respond to NOTUS\u2019 request for comment.<\/p><p>\u201cThe reason that Dan Osborn and this independent movement has started was because Dan Osborn ran against [Sen.] Deb Fischer two years ago and got closer than anybody thought he would as an independent,\u201d Mary Jane Truemper, the chair of the Nebraska Republican Party, told NOTUS.<\/p><p>Kurt Alme, Montana\u2019s Republican candidate, has followed similar talking points to other Republicans. <span><u>Breitbart News Network<\/u><\/span> reported he called Bodnar a \u201cDemocrat in disguise.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI\u2019m running for Senate as an Independent because Washington is broken, and Party bosses in DC are too busy fighting each other while families in our state face higher costs and fewer opportunities,\u201d Bodnar told NOTUS in a statement.<\/p><p>Bengs and Achilles have considerably lower chances of pulling off an upset, Larry Sabato, a political analyst and director of the Center for Politics at the University of Virginia, told NOTUS. But they have been targeted by Republican campaigns in nearly identical ways.<\/p><p>Both independent candidates have past connections to the Democratic Party. <span><u>Bengs ran as a Democrat<\/u><\/span> in 2022 and Achilles was elected to the Idaho state House <span><u>as a Democrat in 2024<\/u><\/span>. Both candidates told NOTUS they plan to join the Senate as independents and, while they acknowledge their past Democratic affiliations, Bengs and Achilles said they plan to caucus as independents.<\/p><p>Still, those commitments haven\u2019t changed the Republican playbook against them.<\/p><p>\u201cOur strategy is simple: tell the truth about Todd Achilles. He\u2019s a liberal Democrat masquerading as an \u2018independent\u2019 and his record makes this clear,\u201d Marc Kilmer, Risch\u2019s campaign manager, told NOTUS in a statement.<br\/><\/p><p>Read more <a href=\"https:\/\/modernhomejournals.com\/?p=3350\">Trump\u2019s Call to \u2018Let Data Reign\u2019 Clashes with Republicans\u2019 Caution<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>A set of independent candidates is holding the Democratic Party at arm\u2019s length. Republicans want to close that gap.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":3358,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[8],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-3359","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-campaigns"],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v27.6 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/product\/yoast-seo-wordpress\/ -->\n<title>Here\u2019s How Republicans Are Running Campaigns Against Independent Candidates - Modern Home Journals<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/modernhomejournals.com\/?p=3359\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Here\u2019s How Republicans Are Running Campaigns Against Independent Candidates - Modern Home Journals\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"A set of independent candidates is holding the Democratic Party at arm\u2019s length. 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