Tom Perez, who is chairman of the national Democratic Party, released a statement that appeared to rebuke Mello as a Democratic candidate for his anti-abortion track record in the Nebraska Legislature, where he served eight years.

“Every Democrat, like every American, should support a woman’s right to make her own choices about her body and her health,” Perez said in a statement aimed at Mello. “That is not negotiable and should not change city by city or state by state.”

The debate over abortion — and not the Sanders rally — slowed Mello’s momentum that he had garnered in the wake of his strong showing in the primary election, Russell argued.

“If it had just been a get-out-the-vote rally with Sanders, that would have been great,” Russell said. “It became a problem when we found ourselves stuck in someone else’s conflict over party orthodoxy.”

As for Kleeb, she said she has no regrets. She argued that Democrats have to take some chances in this state if they plan to win races.

She said she would focus her attention on trying to determine why the Democratic base didn’t turn out in greater numbers in Omaha. She also said she will now turn her attention to recruiting candidates to run in state and local races in 2018.