On June 15, 2020, the Nebraska Democratic Party withdrew their endorsement of Janicek due to sexually explicit text messages he sent about a campaign staff member to a text message group in which she was included. The Associated Press obtained copies of the text messages sent on June 4, in which Janicek asked the other people on the message group if his campaign should "spend some money" on "getting [the staffer] laid," and used graphic language to describe sexual acts. Janicek sent a subsequent message in the group text apologizing for the messages. Members of the Nebraska Democratic Party met with Janicek on June 11 and requested that he withdraw from the race for the U.S. Senate seat. On June 15, Janicek announced that he would not withdraw from the race. His campaign manager, Scott Howitt, issued the following statement: "We are not dropping out. This is between our campaign and a staffer. It is unfortunate and inexcusable. Yes, it happened. Chris apologized. He apologized in person and she accepted." In a phone interview with the Associated Press, Janicek said that state Democrats "are using [the situation] as a crutch" to pressure him to withdraw due to political differences. In response to Janicek's decision to stay in the race, the Nebraska Democratic Party voted unanimously on June 15 to withdraw its support and resources from Janicek's campaign. In a statement issued on June 16, party chair Jane Kleeb said, "Our Democratic Party has no tolerance for sexual harassment. Our Party will not extend resources or any type of support to any candidate that violates our code of conduct and doesn’t treat men and women with the dignity and respect they deserve." The statement also indicated that the staff member quit Janicek's campaign and filed a formal complaint with the Nebraska Democratic Party regarding the incident, which she said violated the party's code of conduct.