Our picks for legislative districts, 21, 25 and 27

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Thanks to term limits, there are lively races this year for legislative districts in Lancaster County.

The Journal Star today makes endorsements in races in which candidates will be eliminated in the May 13 primary. We’re picking the two candidates in those districts who we believe deserve to advance to the general election.

As always, we hope our participation helps spark discussion and interest.

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Colby Coash

District 27

Three candidates are vying for the seat in southwest Lincoln, including Lincoln’s Country Club neighborhood, being vacated by longtime Sen. DiAnna Schimek.

Colby Coash, 32, would give priority to helping the disabled in the Legislature.

“I will fight for those who have no voice. I will bring compassion and responsibility to the Nebraska Legislature,” he said in announcing his candidacy.

Coash is training and staff development director for Developmental Services of Nebraska.

Another priority would be to find ways to combat the brain drain. Coash, who is finishing his master’s degree at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln, says many of his contemporaries have left the state in pursuit of better jobs.

Coash says he would support further tax cuts. The current growth in government spending cannot be sustained, he said.

One possibility for government efficiency, he said, would explore the possibility of providing more incentives for home health care in government-funded health programs.

Dan Marvin, 49, has a record as a pragmatic consensus-builder on the Lincoln City Council.

An investment adviser, Marvin said he would be a strong advocate for Lincoln in seeking more funding for projects such as the planned south beltway and development of the research corridor in the Antelope Valley Project.

Marvin has been a creative force in local government. Among his pet projects was creation of the RUTS program in which roads at the fringe of the city are built in such a way that when the city expands, they don’t have to be rebuilt to be expanded to four lanes.

Marvin said he also would give priority as a state senator to finding ways to develop the state’s economy.

“Everybody needs to get in the boat and row in the same direction,” Marvin said in an editorial board interview.

District 25

Three candidates are facing off in District 25, which includes a swath of east Lincoln and rural eastern Lancaster County. The seat is now held by Sen. Ron Raikes.

Kathy Campbell, 61, is best known for the 16 years she spent on the Lancaster County Board, where she earned a reputation for hard work, fiscal common sense and problem-solving.

Campbell stepped down from the county board six years ago and now is executive vice president of Cedars Youth Services.

Since then, she has served on several important task forces that have given her valuable background in state issues. One task force held hearings across the state on road-building needs and financing issues. She also served on a task force that made recommendations for Medicaid reform.

As a state senator, Campbell said her priorities would include economic development and developing sustainable fiscal strategies for the state.

She also would support legislation on issues that would benefit children, such as ensuring the safety of abused and neglected children. She is interested in expanded opportunities for private organizations to get involved in foster care.

Brent Smoyer, 26, has been watching legislation being made from the sidelines the past few years as an intern in former Rep. Tom Osborne’s Washington office, as an aide to the minority whip in the Iowa Senate and lately as an aide to Omaha Sen. Scott Lautenbaugh in Lincoln.

Now he wants to participate.

Smoyer stresses his conservative values. He wants minimal government infringement on rights to gun ownership. He believes in traditional family values and the sanctity of life. He wants to reduce the tax burden on Nebraskans.

Smoyer wants to reduce Nebraska’s brain drain, primarily through fiscal policies that encourage business growth and entrepreneurship.

He said he believes that sometimes legislators need to make compromises for the public good.

“I can make compromises without losing my conviction or my values,” Smoyer said in a Journal Star interview.

District 21

A field of six candidates — the most in the state — is vying for the District 21 seat being left by Sen. Carol Hudkins. The district includes a chunk of northwest Lincoln, rural areas and the towns of Raymond, Malcolm and Ceresco.

Vern Barrett, 68, has been teaching leadership since 1980 in the Department of Agricultural Leadership, Education and Communication at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln.

He espouses the concept of servant leadership and believes the ability to listen is one of the most important behaviors a leader can develop.

Barrett describes himself as a fiscal conservative.

He already is analyzing how he can meet the needs of constituents in his district, which vary from urban residents in northwest Lincoln to small towns, farmers and acreage owners.

In an interview with the Journal Star editorial board, Barrett said he plans to introduce legislation to reform government, such as prohibiting Public Service Commission members from receiving contributions from companies they regulate.

Tami Soper, 40, has worked for public and private human service agencies, including a yearlong stint as director of the Malone Center, helping the organization struggle back after it closed its doors in 2002.

For the past few years, Soper has been an aide to Sen. Gwen Howard of Omaha.

Soper also wants to improve funding for education but hopes to reduce local tax burdens by including cost of school construction in the state school aid formula and working to reduce unfunded mandates handed to schools.

As she has campaigned across the district, Soper said she has heard concern about water issues. Careful policy formulation can ensure that people can benefit from resources without overexpending them, she said.

Soper’s background in human services would be valuable in the Legislature as it grapples with problems in the health and human services system. Soper also said she would work to make health care more affordable.