LINCOLN — State Sen. Mike Hilgers of Lincoln made it official that he will be a Republican candidate for attorney general.

The announcement, which had been anticipated, comes after current Attorney General Doug Peterson’s recent announcement that he will not seek a third term.

Hilgers, a 43-year-old lawyer who represents a district in northwest Lincoln, has run for attorney general previously. That was in 2014 when Peterson, a fellow Republican, won the GOP primary to replace then-Attorney General Jon Bruning.

“This is a match of my skill sets,” Hilgers told The World-Herald of the attorney general’s post. He said that a lot of the “battles” over issues like federal government overreach are fought by states attorneys in court.

Hilgers now serves as speaker of the Legislature, the top leadership position in the State Legislature. As a lawmaker, he has supported further restrictions on abortion rights and won the passage of a bill to expedite the construction of the South Beltway, a freeway south of Lincoln.

He first ran for the Legislature in 2012, losing to incumbent State Sen. Ken Haar. Hilgers ran again for an open seat in the Legislature in 2016 and won. He was reelected in 2020. Hilgers is barred from running for his seat again due to term limits.

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