Both candidates for party leadership courted young and minority members in speeches before the vote.

Hassebrook said reaching out to those voters would allow Nebraska Democrats to "change the politics of this state fundamentally" over the next decade.

Kleeb said one party already represents the status quo in Nebraska: "They're called Republicans."

She said a "newly energized" Democratic Party should serve as a wake-up call for the GOP.

"Progressive is a loaded word," she said. "It scares people who like things the way that they are."

Outgoing Chairman Vince Powers, who did not run for re-election, said Democrats must fight to hold GOP Gov. Pete Ricketts accountable.

Yet legislative term limits enacted by voters in 2000 have stretched the party, making it more difficult for Democrats to fend off a Ricketts "supermajority" among senators who would enact more tax cuts in coming years.

"Pete Ricketts wants to turn us into Kansas," Powers said.

That state's tax cuts have led to repeated budget shortfalls and are widely considered a failure.