Mark Cohen runs nonpartisan bid for U.S. House in Nebraska’s 3rd District

Mark Cohen has launched an exploratory committee to consider a nonpartisan U.S. House bid in Nebraska’s 3rd Congressional District. (Courtesy of Mark Cohen)

LINCOLN — Mark Cohen, a former Air Force attorney and karate instructor, is running a nonpartisan bid in Nebraska’s 3rd Congressional District against U.S. Rep. Adrian Smith in the 2026 midterms.

The state’s rural, sprawling 3rd Congressional District includes central and western Nebraska and much of the state’s northeastern and southeastern edges. It’s one of the nation’s most conservative congressional districts by political party registration and voting history.

Cohen’s bid comes after launching an exploratory committee in August. Smith already faces a Republican primary challenger in former U.S. Border Patrol agent David Huebner