District details

Pansing Brooks, a Democrat, previously represented District 28 for two terms from 2015 to 2023. She ran for Congress in 2022. She is a lawyer.

Woodson, a registered nonpartisan, is a civil servant. He is a two-time graduate of the University of Nebraska-Lincoln, having earned his master’s degree in community and regional planning in 2025.

Pansing Brooks is endorsed by the Sierra Club, Women Who Run, the Nebraska Young Democrats, the Nebraska Democratic Party Latino Caucus and the Nebraska Stonewall Democrats, according to her Instagram page. Planned Parenthood Advocates of Nebraska also endorses her.

On the issues

Pansing Brooks said she is running again out of a love for the community of District 28 and to give voice to those who feel unheard. She said she has served on community boards, helped lead major fundraising efforts and stayed engaged in civic life. Woodson said he is running because the Legislature should pay closer attention to whether state policy actually works for people. He said he is concerned with the Legislature’s deferring to the governor over providing real oversight.

Woodson said the top issue in the district is housing, specifically a need for more housing supply across stages of life and income levels. He said he would encourage housing production, making approval processes faster and decreasing unnecessary barriers to building. Pansing Brooks said the top issue in the district is supporting public schools. She said if she is elected, she would make sure public schools get necessary state funding and fight back against the decision not to follow the will of voters and ban private school vouchers.

Pansing Brooks said she would oppose any attempt to shift the tax burden to low-income earners through increasing sales tax revenue to offset property tax relief. She said funding public education would be the most responsible way to reduce property taxes so as to shift the burden off of local taxpayers. Woodson said he’s open to reviewing sales tax exemptions but would be cautious about relying on sales taxes too much or treating them as a simple solution. He said Nebraska’s tax system should be balanced, predictable and able to fund essential services.

Woodson said lawmakers should be very careful about changing voter-approved ballot measures, and their changes should stay closely tied to what voters approved. He said, if elected, he would ask if a proposed change helps the voter-approved law function. Pansing Brooks said, “When the people speak, the Legislature must listen.” She said, if elected, she would vote in a way that respects the will of the people.

Both candidates had similar responses regarding data centers in Nebraska, emphasizing the need to protect natural resources and make sure local officials and communities have clear, transparent information. Pansing Brooks said data center investments should benefit Nebraska communities. Woodson said the state may need clearer standards to give clarity to the process of establishing a data center.

Woodson said he would start addressing the state’s budget deficit by protecting essential services and being honest about tradeoffs. He said he would also review tax exemptions, credits, incentives and spending programs to see what’s actually valuable to the public. Pansing Brooks said lawmakers should look closely at their creation of deficits by approving “hidden spending” through transfers like property tax relief. She said essential services should not be cut.

Pansing Brooks said one of her top priorities in the Legislature would be workforce development to combat brain drain. She said she would support greater investments in childcare, making Nebraska welcoming for young people and investments in fiber optic internet access for rural Nebraska. Woodson said Nebraska should retain more talent rather than assume business recruitment alone will solve brain drain. He said he would also support expanding housing and strengthening internship-to-career pipelines.