Bob Krist

Krist won the primary election on May 15, 2018, defeating two other candidates.

In 2017, Krist expressed interest in running for the Nebraska governorship in 2018. He initially indicated that he might run against incumbent Pete Ricketts in the Republican primary. In July 2017, he stated that he would run as a third-party candidate, and that he would remain a Republican until the end of his term in the Legislature. In September 2017, he announced his candidacy, and stated that he would change his party registration to "nonpartisan" later that day. In February 2018, he changed his registration to the Democratic Party, and said that he would run for that party's gubernatorial nomination.

In 2014, Krist was inducted into the Nebraska Aviation Hall of Fame. In 2017, Nebraska Secretary of State, John Gale, appointed him to serve on the Honor a Veteran Honorary Steering Committee.

Krist was appointed to the Nebraska Unicameral Legislature by Governor Dave Heineman on September 11, 2009, to replace Senator Mike Friend. He won election to this office in 2010 and was re-elected in 2014. Krist represents the 10th Legislative District, an area encompassing some of the northwest portion of Omaha, the entire City of Bennington, and a north-central portion of Douglas County. In 2015, senators elected him Chairman of the Executive Board of the Legislative Council and he also served as Chairman of the Referencing Committee.

Krist is currently the Contract Manager for the United States Army Corps of Engineers Northwest Division Aviation Program. He has served as a pilot since 2000 and the Chief Pilot since 2002. The Division Aircraft is based at Offutt Air Force Base in the Omaha District and also services the Kansas City, Missouri, Portland, Oregon, Seattle, Washington and Walla Walla, Washington districts.

Among other operations, Krist served in both Operation Desert Shield and Desert Storm. In 1998, he was chosen as an Active Duty Air Force Advisor to then-Nebraska Governor Ben Nelson and the Adjutant General of Nebraska.

Krist was born in Omaha, Nebraska. In 1980, he married Margaret Mary O'Connor.

Krist served in the United States Air Force from 1979 to 2000 and retired as a lieutenant colonel. During his stint in the Air Force, Krist held key leadership positions directing critical missions including the high visibility Looking Glass mission at Offutt Air Force Base in Bellevue, Nebraska. He scheduled operations and flew missions on the Looking Glass EC-135 aircraft, which was the Airborne Command Post for Strategic Air Command.

Krist graduated with honors from Creighton Preparatory School in Omaha, Nebraska, in 1975. He attended the University of St. Thomas in Saint Paul, Minnesota, where he received a Bachelor of Arts degree in sociology in 1979. He obtained a Master of Arts degree in business administration and human relations from Webster University in St. Louis, Missouri in 1982.

Robert J. Krist (born March 29, 1957) is an American politician who served in U.S. state of Nebraska. He represented the 10th District, including part of Omaha, in the Nebraska Legislature, and was the Democratic nominee for Governor of Nebraska in the 2018 election.