2023 Lincoln, Nebraska mayoral election

The 2023 Lincoln, Nebraska mayoral election was held on May 2, 2023 to determine the mayor of Lincoln, Nebraska. It was preceded by a primary election on April 4 where the top two vote-getters, regardless of party affiliation, advanced to the general election. Incumbent Democratic mayor Leirion Gaylor Baird ran for reelection to a second term in office, and was re-elected. The election was officially nonpartisan.^[1]

2023 Lincoln, Nebraska mayoral election

← 2019 May 2, 2023 2027 →
Turnout	46.22%
Nominee Leirion Gaylor Baird Suzanne Geist Party Democratic Republican Popular vote 43,984 36,417 Percentage 54.58% 45.19%
Results by city council district: Baird:   50–60%
Mayor before election Leirion Gaylor Baird Democratic Elected mayor Leirion Gaylor Baird Democratic

Primary election

Declared

• Leirion Gaylor Baird, incumbent mayor (2019–present) (party affiliation: Democratic)^[2]
• Suzanne Geist, former Nebraska state senator (2017–2023) (party affiliation: Republican)^[3]
• Stan Parker, Christian radio executive and former University of Nebraska football player (party affiliation: Republican)^[4]

Declined

• Jack Riggins, KLIN radio host (party affiliation: Republican)^[5]

Endorsements

Leirion Gaylor Baird (D)

Organizations

• EMILY's List^[6]
• International Association of Fire Fighters 644^[7]

Suzanne Geist (R)

Federal officials

• Deb Fischer, U.S. Senator from Nebraska (2013–present)^[8]

Statewide politicians

• Jim Pillen, Governor of Nebraska (2023–present)^[9]

Organizations

• Lancaster County Republican Party^[8]
• Lincoln Police Union^[10]

Stan Parker (R)

U.S. Representatives

• Tom Osborne, former U.S. Representative from Nebraska's 3rd congressional district (2001–2007)^[4]

Results

Lincoln mayoral primary results, April 4, 2023^[11]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Democratic	Leirion Gaylor Baird (incumbent)	29,216	49.80%
	Republican	Suzanne Geist	19,377	33.03%
	Republican	Stan Parker	10,071	17.17%
Total votes			58,664	100.00%

An additional 670 mailed ballots were received by the Election Commission in the days following the primary election, too late to be counted.^[12]

General election

Candidates

• Leirion Gaylor Baird, incumbent mayor (Democratic)
• Suzanne Geist, former Nebraska state senator (Republican)

Debate

Host	Date & time	Link(s)	Participants
			Leirion Gaylor Baird (D)	Suzanne Geist (R)
KLKN	April 23, 2023	[13]	Present	Present

Endorsements

Leirion Gaylor Baird (D)

Organizations

• EMILY's List^[6]
• Lincoln Fire Fighters Union^[7]
• Nebraska Democratic Party^[14]

Suzanne Geist (R)

Federal officials

• Deb Fischer, U.S. Senator from Nebraska (2013–present)^[8]

Statewide politicians

• Jim Pillen, Governor of Nebraska (2023–present)^[9]

Organizations

• Lancaster County Republican Party^[8]
• Lincoln Police Union^[10]

Individual

• Stan Parker, Christian radio executive and former University of Nebraska football player^[15]

Results

Lincoln mayoral general results, May 2, 2023^[16]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Democratic	Leirion Gaylor Baird (incumbent)	44,496	54.65%
	Republican	Suzanne Geist	36,727	45.11%
	Write-in		192	0.24%
Turnout			81,587	46.22%
	Democratic hold

Following the second hourly results pull, Leirion Gaylor Baird was declared the winner and Suzanne Geist conceded.^[17][18]

References

1. "Mayoral election in Lincoln, Nebraska (2023)".
2. "Gaylor-Baird Announces Re-election Bid".
3. "State Sen. Suzanne Geist announces GOP bid for Lincoln mayor".
4. "Christian broadcaster Stan Parker announces run for Lincoln mayor". October 5, 2022.
5. "Gaylor Baird prepares to seek reelection as Lincoln's mayoral race starts to take shape".
6. Allison, Emily (February 23, 2023). "EMILYs List Endorses Leirion Gaylor Baird for Mayor of Lincoln, Nebraska". EMILYs List Mailing List. Retrieved October 4, 2023.
7. Sanderford, Aaron (March 16, 2023). "Lincoln Mayor Gaylor Baird endorsed by fire union". Nebraska Examiner. Retrieved October 4, 2023.
8. Little, Amber; Shawver, Bryan (March 14, 2023). "Lincoln mayor candidate profile: Suzanne Geist". KOLN. Retrieved October 4, 2023.
9. Dorn, Nolan (January 31, 2023). "Nebraska Gov. Jim Pillen endorses Suzanne Geist for mayor". KLKN. Retrieved October 4, 2023.
10. Sanderford, Aaron (January 26, 2023). "Lincoln Police Union endorses Geist for mayor". Nebraska Examiner. Retrieved October 4, 2023.
11. "Summary Results Report - Updated April 7th: OFFICIAL Final Results". Lancaster County Election Commissioner.
12. Porter, Chase (April 17, 2023). "Vote Early Now: Lincoln's May 2nd General Election". KLIN - News/Talk 1400. Retrieved April 27, 2023.
13. "WATCH: Geist and Gaylor Baird face off in Lincoln mayoral debate". KLKN.
14. "2023 Lincoln City Elections: General Election May 2". Nebraska Democrats. Retrieved October 4, 2023.
15. Ozaki, Andrew (April 3, 2023). "Incumbent Leirion Gaylor Baird, Suzanne Geist race for Lincoln mayor". YouTube. KETV ABC 7. Retrieved October 4, 2023.
16. "Summary Results Report - Monday, May 8th: City of Lincoln General Election OFFICIAL FINAL RESULTS". Lancaster County Election Commissioner. Retrieved May 8, 2023.
17. Reist, Margaret. "Mayor Leirion Gaylor Baird beats former state Sen. Suzanne Geist in contentious Lincoln race". JournalStar.com. Retrieved May 2, 2023.
18. Little, Amber (May 2, 2023). "Leirion Gaylor Baird re-elected Lincoln mayor". 10/11 Now. Retrieved May 2, 2023.

External links

Official campaign websites

• Leirion Gaylor Baird (D) for Mayor
• Suzanne Geist (R) for Mayor
• Stan Parker (R) for Mayor