Independent Senate candidate Dan Osborn receives nearly $500,000 from ActBlue, left-wing donors

Independent U.S. Senate candidate Dan Osborn received close to $500,000 from the Democrats' ActBlue platform in the first quarter of 2026, along with funds from left-wing donors and activists, despite his pledge not to caucus with either major party if elected, campaign finance records show.

Osborn also got thousands of dollars from political action committees linked to Sen. Martin Heinrich, D-N.M., former Democratic congressman Ron Kind, and Missouri Democrat Lucas Kunce's failed 2024 Senate campaign. Rory Gates, son of Bill and Melinda Gates, donated $7,000 in the first quarter, as did Sean Eldridge, founder and president of Stand Up America. That group, started in 2016 to oppose Donald Trump, states American democracy is rooted in systemic racism, classism, and sexism that persists today.

Democratic megadonor Wendy Schmidt contributed as well. OpenSecrets records show she has donated nearly $10 million to Democrats and nothing to Republicans.

Nebraska Republican Party chairwoman Mary Jane Truemper said Osborn has cozied up to elite Washington Democrats, including those linked to Jeffrey Epstein like Bob Kerrey, while pushing an anti-billionaire message. "If those contradictory actions tell us anything, it’s that he will not keep his promise of not caucusing with either party," she told Fox News Digital. "Nebraskans value transparency and reliability in our representatives. We have yet to see either from Dan Osborn."

Fox News Digital sought comment from the Osborn campaign but got no response. A review of his Q1 2026 filings found no prominent Republican donors. His affiliated Conservatives for Osborn PAC had no donations that quarter and just $68 cash on hand.

Osborn has donated to other Democratic congressional candidates. Nebraska Democratic Party leaders have endorsed him. Fight Agency, which handles his digital operations, was founded by Democratic strategists including consultants for Bernie Sanders' 2016 presidential run, Pennsylvania Sen. John Fetterman's winning Senate campaign, and Arizona Rep. Ruben Gallego. The firm lists clients like New York City socialist Mayor Zohran Mamdani, Bernie Sanders, and Rep. Greg Casar.

An ad-buying firm for Osborn's hybrid PAC, Working Class Heroes Fund, works with Jasmine Crockett, the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee, Sen. Cory Booker, D-N.J., and other Democrats.

On his campaign website's "Where I Stand" page, Osborn writes: "As an independent, I’ll be uniquely positioned to bring together a majority to get it done," referring to securing the border from illegal immigration. "I believe we all have more in common with each other than we do with the partisans who run Washington."

National Republican Senatorial Committee spokesperson Nick Puglia called Osborn a fake independent backed by radical leftists like Elizabeth Warren and Zohran Mamdani’s advisors. "It’s no surprise Osborn’s campaign is being bankrolled by even more Democrats and ActBlue donors," he told Fox News Digital.

At a town hall last year, Osborn said if his independent bid failed, "there’s only one party I would caucus with," according to audio reported by The Plains-Sentinel. Asked which, he replied: "Not Pete Ricketts’s party." Ricketts is the Republican incumbent senator from Nebraska facing Osborn in November if Osborn advances past the May 12 primary.