Ben’s out, and Democrats are worried. Sen. Ben Nelson of Nebraska officially announced his retirement from the Senate by declaring that he would not run for a third term. Nebraska is a red state (even the Cornhuskers are red) and although he’s a conservative Democrat, his departure could threaten the already tenuous Democratic majority in the Senate. It’s likely that one of the stable of Republican opponents running for Nelson’s seat will take it as the Dems don’t seem to have a Plan B.

There are a number of factors that no doubt effected his decision to bow out. The large number of Republican challengers have been seizing on the anti-Obama sentiment by criticizing Nelson’s support of the healthcare overhaul and the federal stimulus legislation. In addition, Nebraska Republicans were looking at conservative-friendly redistricting (just like every other conservative state) that would make Nelsons’ run even more difficult. Finally, Nelson is facing one of the most conservative climates in his own state in decades, with “centrism” considered a dirty word and “compromise” a sign of weakness, there’s no place in the state’s political climate for a conservative Democrat.

Nelson has been weighing the decision for months now, and a handful of top-ranking Democrats have lobbied the 70-year old Senator to keep in the race.

As with the presidential race, the battery of Republican challengers has been dogged by some poor press and verbal mis-steps. Attorney General Jon Bruning took a media black eye when it was alleged that he may not have paid taxes on his second home. He also received some notoriety for comparing people on unemployment benefits to “scavenging raccoons.” State Senator Deb Fischer is from the rural western part of the state, and has been holding to the Tea Party platform of grandstanding partisanship and vitriolic statements. State Treasurer Don Stenburg also answered allegations of malfeasance.

Likely contenders to take Nelson’s place include Sen. Steve Lathrop, an attorney in Omaha who is highly popular in his mostly Democratic district, and former Sen. Bob Kerrey, who was immensely popular in the state.

Nebraska is one of the few states with a single house, or Unicameral, in which Democrats and Republicans are forced to work together to get anything done. However, politics in the state have become increasingly partisan, and as State Sen. Heath mello toldThe Huffington Post, “That is not the way Nebraskans have chosen their senators in the past. We've always elected independent-minded people to represent Nebraska's interests, ahead of the political parties.”