Merv Riepe
Merv Riepe (Republican Party) is a member of the Nebraska State Senate, representing District 12. He assumed office on January 4, 2023. His current term ends on January 6, 2027.
Riepe is running for re-election to the Nebraska State Senate to represent District 12. He is on the ballot in the primary on May 12, 2026.[source]
Biography
Merv Riepe was born in Griswold, Iowa, and lives in Nebraska. Riepe graduated from Griswold High School in 1960. He served in the U.S. Navy from 1960 to 1963 as a hospital corpsman. Riepe earned a B.S. in finance from the University of Nebraska at Omaha in 1968 and an M.A. in health care policy and hospital management from the University of Iowa in 1970. His career experience includes working as a hospital executive. Riepe was a member of the Ralston Board of Education, the Mid-America Council of Scouts board, Nebraska Wesleyan University's president’s advisory board, and the Combined Health Agencies Drive board. Riepe also chaired Outlook Nebraska, Inc.[1]
Committee assignments
Note: This membership information was last updated in September 2023. Ballotpedia completes yearly updates of committee membership. If you would like to send us an update, email us at: editor@ballotpedia.org
2025-2026
Riepe was assigned to the following committees:
2023-2024
Riepe was assigned to the following committees:
2017 legislative session
At the beginning of the 2017 legislative session, this legislator served on the following committees:
| Nebraska committee assignments, 2017 |
|---|
| • General Affairs |
| • Health and Human Services, Chair |
| • Urban Affairs |
2015 legislative session
At the beginning of the 2015 legislative session, Riepe served on the following committees:
| Nebraska committee assignments, 2015 |
|---|
| • Agriculture |
| • General Affairs |
| • Health and Human Services |
Sponsored legislation
The following table lists bills this person sponsored as a legislator, according to BillTrack50 and sorted by action history. Bills are sorted by the date of their last action. The following list may not be comprehensive. To see all bills this legislator sponsored, click on the legislator's name in the title of the table.
Elections
2026
See also: Nebraska State Senate elections, 2026
General election
The primary will occur on May 12, 2026. The general election will occur on November 3, 2026. General election candidates will be added here following the primary.
Nonpartisan primary
Nonpartisan primary election for Nebraska State Senate District 12
Incumbent Merv Riepe (Nonpartisan), Thomas Kastrup (Nonpartisan), and Christy Knorr (Nonpartisan) are running in the primary for Nebraska State Senate District 12 on May 12, 2026.
Candidate | ||
 | Merv Riepe (Nonpartisan) | |
| Thomas Kastrup (Nonpartisan) | ||
| Christy Knorr (Nonpartisan) | ||
| ||||
 = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey. | ||||
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Withdrawn or disqualified candidates
- Robin Richards (Nonpartisan)
Endorsements
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2022
See also: Nebraska State Senate elections, 2022
General election
General election for Nebraska State Senate District 12
Merv Riepe defeated Robin Richards in the general election for Nebraska State Senate District 12 on November 8, 2022.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ | | Merv Riepe (Nonpartisan) | 52.3 | 5,942 |
 | Robin Richards (Nonpartisan) | 47.7 | 5,418 | |
| Total votes: 11,360 | |||
| = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey. | ||||
| If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey. | ||||
Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team. | ||||
Nonpartisan primary election
Nonpartisan primary for Nebraska State Senate District 12
Merv Riepe and Robin Richards defeated Haile Kucera and Bob Borgeson in the primary for Nebraska State Senate District 12 on May 10, 2022.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ | | Merv Riepe (Nonpartisan) | 45.0 | 3,038 |
| ✔ | | Robin Richards (Nonpartisan) | 20.3 | 1,369 |
| Haile Kucera (Nonpartisan) | 17.5 | 1,185 | ||
| Bob Borgeson (Nonpartisan) | 17.2 | 1,163 | ||
| Total votes: 6,755 | |||
| = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey. | ||||
| If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey. | ||||
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Withdrawn or disqualified candidates
- Bryce Lukowski (Nonpartisan)
2020
See also: Ralston Public Schools, Nebraska, elections (2020)
General election
General election for Ralston Public Schools school board At-large (3 seats)
The following candidates ran in the general election for Ralston Public Schools school board At-large on November 3, 2020.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ | | Merv Riepe (Nonpartisan) | 20.1 | 3,546 |
| ✔ | Heather Johnson (Nonpartisan) | 18.6 | 3,288 | |
| ✔ | | Robin Richards (Nonpartisan) | 17.4 | 3,074 |
 | Patrick McPherson (Nonpartisan) | 14.8 | 2,616 | |
| Catherine Payne (Nonpartisan) | 14.5 | 2,555 | ||
| Jodi Norton (Nonpartisan) | 14.0 | 2,480 | ||
| Other/Write-in votes | 0.6 | 112 | ||
| Total votes: 17,671 | |||
| = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey. | ||||
| If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey. | ||||
Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team. | ||||
2018
- See also: Nebraska State Senate elections, 2018
General election
General election for Nebraska State Senate District 12
Steve Lathrop defeated incumbent Merv Riepe in the general election for Nebraska State Senate District 12 on November 6, 2018.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ |  | Steve Lathrop (Nonpartisan) | 55.8 | 7,030 |
| Merv Riepe (Nonpartisan) | 44.2 | 5,559 | |
| Total votes: 12,589 (100.00% precincts reporting) | |||
| = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey. | ||||
| If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey. | ||||
Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team. | ||||
Nonpartisan primary election
Nonpartisan primary for Nebraska State Senate District 12
Steve Lathrop and incumbent Merv Riepe advanced from the primary for Nebraska State Senate District 12 on May 15, 2018.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ | | Steve Lathrop (Nonpartisan) | 53.5 | 2,658 |
| ✔ | | Merv Riepe (Nonpartisan) | 46.5 | 2,313 |
| Total votes: 4,971 | |||
| = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey. | ||||
| If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey. | ||||
Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team. | ||||
2014
- See also: Nebraska State Senate elections, 2014
Elections for the Nebraska State Senate took place in 2014. A primary election took place on May 13, 2014. The general election took place on November 4, 2014. The signature filing deadline for challengers wishing to run in this election was March 3, 2014, two days after the statutory deadline, which fell on a Saturday. Incumbents were required to file for election by February 18, 2014, three days after the statutory deadline, which fell on the Saturday prior to Presidents Day. Merv Riepe and Greg Hosch defeated Joseph Hering in the primary election. Riepe defeated Hosch in the general election.[2][3][4]
| Party | Candidate | Vote % | Votes | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Independent |  Merv Riepe |
64% | 5,622 | |
| Independent | Greg Hosch | 36% | 3,167 | |
| Total Votes | 8,789 | |||
| Candidate | Vote % | Votes |
|---|---|---|
|
Merv Riepe |
58.8% | 2,468 |
| Greg Hosch |
30.9% | 1,298 |
| Joseph Hering | 10.2% | 428 |
| Total Votes | 4,194 | |
Campaign themes
2026
Ballotpedia survey responses
See also: Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection
Merv Riepe has not yet completed Ballotpedia's 2026 Candidate Connection survey. Send a message to Merv Riepe asking him to fill out the survey. If you are Merv Riepe, click here to fill out Ballotpedia's 2026 Candidate Connection survey.
Who fills out Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection survey?
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You can ask Merv Riepe to fill out this survey by using the button below or emailing merv@voteriepe.com.
2022
Merv Riepe did not complete Ballotpedia's 2022 Candidate Connection survey.
2020
Merv Riepe did not complete Ballotpedia's 2020 Candidate Connection survey.
2014
Riepe's website highlighted the following campaign themes:[5]
- Excerpt: "Lower the tax burden and promote tax fairness"
- Excerpt: "Eliminate wasteful spending and needless duplication"
- Excerpt: "Create jobs to keep our children and grandchildren in Nebraska"
- Excerpt: "Contain growth of entitlement spending"
- Excerpt: "Get tough on crime–reform good-time laws and deal wit prison overcrowding"
Campaign finance summary
Note: The finance data shown here comes from the disclosures required of candidates and parties. Depending on the election or state, this may represent only a portion of all the funds spent on their behalf. Satellite spending groups may or may not have expended funds related to the candidate or politician on whose page you are reading this disclaimer. Campaign finance data from elections may be incomplete. For elections to federal offices, complete data can be found at the FEC website. Click here for more on federal campaign finance law and here for more on state campaign finance law.
Scorecards
A scorecard evaluates a legislator’s voting record. Its purpose is to inform voters about the legislator’s political positions. Because scorecards have varying purposes and methodologies, each report should be considered on its own merits. For example, an advocacy group’s scorecard may assess a legislator’s voting record on one issue while a state newspaper’s scorecard may evaluate the voting record in its entirety.
Ballotpedia is in the process of developing an encyclopedic list of published scorecards. Some states have a limited number of available scorecards or scorecards produced only by select groups. It is Ballotpedia’s goal to incorporate all available scorecards regardless of ideology or number.
Click here for an overview of legislative scorecards in all 50 states. To contribute to the list of scorecards, email suggestions to editor@ballotpedia.org.
Below you can find the scorecards found for the Nebraska State Senate (Unicameral) in 2025.
- Holland Children's Movement — Legislators are scored on children's issues.
- The Freedom Index — Legislators are scored on their adherence to the limited government principles of the U.S. Constitution.
Below you can find the scorecards found for the Nebraska State Senate (Unicameral) in 2024.
- Club for Growth Foundation — Legislators are scored on their votes on bills related to economic issues.
- Holland Children's Movement — Legislators are scored on children's issues.
- National Federation of Independent Business — Legislators are scored on their votes on bills related to business issues.
Below you can find the scorecards found for the Nebraska State Senate (Unicameral) in 2023.
- Holland Children's Movement — Legislators are scored on children's issues.
- The American Conservative Union — Legislators are scored on their votes on conservative issues.
Below you can find the scorecards found for the Nebraska State Senate (Unicameral) in 2021.
- Club for Growth Foundation — Legislators are scored on their votes on bills related to economic issues.
- Holland Children's Movement — Legislators are scored on children's issues.
- The American Conservative Union — Legislators are scored on their votes on conservative issues.
Below you can find the scorecards found for the Nebraska State Senate (Unicameral) in 2018.
- Holland Children's Movement — Legislators are scored on children's issues.
- National Federation of Independent Business — Legislators are scored on their votes on bills related to business issues.
- Nebraska Chamber of Commerce & Industry — Legislators are scored on their votes on bills related to business issues.
- The American Conservative Union — Legislators are scored on their votes on conservative issues.
Below you can find the scorecards found for the Nebraska State Senate (Unicameral) in 2017.
- Holland Children's Movement — Legislators are scored on children's issues.
- The American Conservative Union — Legislators are scored on their votes on conservative issues.
Below you can find the scorecards found for the Nebraska State Senate (Unicameral) in 2016.
- Holland Children's Movement — Legislators are scored on children's issues.
- National Federation of Independent Business — Legislators are scored on their votes on small business issues.
- The American Conservative Union — Legislators are scored on their votes on conservative issues.
- Washington County Republican Party — Legislators are scored by the Washington County Republican Party on how conservative they voted on 10 bills.
Below you can find the scorecards found for the Nebraska State Senate (Unicameral) in 2015.
- Americans for Prosperity - Nebraska — Legislators are scored based on bills related to economic issues.
- Holland Children's Movement — Legislators are scored on children's issues.
- The American Conservative Union — Legislators are scored on their votes on conservative issues.
- Washington County Republican Party — Legislators are scored by the Washington County Republican Party on how conservative they voted on seven bills.
Personal
Note: Please contact us if the personal information below requires an update.
Riepe is married and has one child.[6]
See also
2026 Elections
External links
|
Candidate Nebraska State Senate District 12 |
Officeholder Nebraska State Senate District 12 |
Personal |
Footnotes
- ↑ Nebraska Legislature "Sen. Merv Riepe," accessed March 28, 2023
- ↑ Nebraska Secretary of State, "Official Results of Nebraska Primary Election," accessed July 7, 2014
- ↑ Nebraska Secretary of State, "Statewide Candidate List," accessed March 21, 2014
- ↑ Nebraska Secretary of State, "Official Results: General Election - November 4, 2014," accessed December 14, 2014
- ↑ voteriepe.com, "Issues," accessed March 14, 2014
- ↑ Project Vote Smart, "Biography," accessed March 14, 2014
| Political offices | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by Steve Lathrop (D) |
Nebraska State Senate District 12 2023-Present |
Succeeded by - |
| Preceded by - |
Ralston Public Schools school board At-large 2021-2022 |
Succeeded by - |
| Preceded by Steve Lathrop |
Nebraska State Senate District 12 2015-2019 |
Succeeded by Steve Lathrop (D) |
