JOE DUGGAN / Lincoln Journal Star | Posted: Monday, May 8, 2006 7:00 pm
Teachers prevailed in Lincoln’s most crowded legislative primary race Tuesday.
Hamilton College computer instructor Bob Swanson and University of Nebraska-Lincoln professor Bill Avery will square off in November for the District 28 seat. They finished first and second respectively in unofficial results, beating out Mark Munger and Rick Poore in the east-central Lincoln district.
Meanwhile, Carol J. Brown finished just three votes ahead of Danielle Nantkes in north Lincoln’s District 46 primary. The two will now meet in November.
And in northeast Lincoln, Amanda McGill finished ahead of Steve Guittar in a preview of the race that will decide the District 26 seat.
Because the Nebraska Unicameral is officially nonpartisan, the top two primary vote-getters advance to face each other in the November general election regardless of party affiliation.
Term limits ousted veteran lawmakers from each of the three districts, creating the wide-open races without incumbents. Here are rundowns from each race:
District 28
The race to succeed Sen. Chris Beutler brought out the most candidates and the most money.
The four candidates raised a combined $142,000, according to records from the state Accountability and Disclosure Commission.
Firefighter/small businessman Munger raised the most, with $63,000, followed by Avery ($40,000), small businessman Poore ($24,000) and Swanson ($14,500).
Avery, Munger and Poore are all Democrats while Swanson is a Republican.
Yet it was Swanson who captured the most votes, 2,305 (33.6 percent). Avery finished with 1,922 votes (22 percent).
Swanson said he was pleased with the results, despite getting into the race about two months ago. But he also understood that his opponent won’t be facing two other Democrats in November.
Between now and then, Swanson, 40, said he intends to show voters that he’s a conservative Republican who cares about education, reducing taxes and creating jobs with salaries that can support a family.
“I know it will be very easy for others to pin me down to one issue or another,” he said. “There’s a lot more to me than just that.”
Avery, 64, credited his strong showing to walking every precinct in the district and meeting face-to-face with more than 4,000 voters. His campaign themes of better jobs, stronger schools, property tax relief and reducing the influence of special interests on government all emerged out of those discussions.
“It looks like the message we took to voters was embraced,” Avery said.
District 26
The November showdown for District 26 will give voters the choice between a Republican and a Democrat who each raised thousands during their primary campaigns.
McGill, the Democrat, is the college services executive for New Digital Group, has gathered $17,000 in contributions. Guittar, the Republican, is a commercial real estate broker for Thompson Realty Group who has raised close to $21,000.
McGill stressed neighborhood revitalization, community safety and strong schools. The 26-year-old former TV news reporter’s message seemed to resonate with voters.
“I talked a lot about trying to keep folks in Nebraska,” she said. “Younger folks with job opportunities. So many of our retired folks are … leaving the state because it's so hard for them to maintain their ability to live because taxes are so high.”
Guittar, 51, campaigned on tax reform, strengthening education and economic development. He said he has more work to do between now and the general election.
“I feel I know the people better, I have a great deal of experience and I know the issues, so I hope I can do a good job and communicate that between now and November,” he said.
They will compete to replace Sen. Marian Price.
Sean Zehtab, a 25-year-old law student and Iraq War veteran who campaigned as a Democrat, finished a distant third.
District 46
Two Democrats are headed for what promises to be a competitive election for the District 46 seat, formerly held by Dave Landis.
Brown, 53, business development specialist for Lincoln Action Program and co-owner of North Star Jewelry, got just three more votes than Nantkes, 28, a lawyer with Nebraska Appleseed.
Brown got 1,172 votes, Nantkes got 1,169 while Republican candidate and small business owner LaRae Eifert finished third with 900 votes.
Nantkes raised nearly $36,000 leading to the primary while her opponents did not exceed the $5,000 contribution minimum to trigger campaign finance reports.
“My focus has just been going door-to-door,” said Brown, who advocates for strong neighborhoods, affordable health care and restricting the government’s use of eminent domain.
Among Nantkes’ issues are strengthening schools, access to health care and helping working families succeed.
“I am so very humbled by this experience,” Nantkes said Tuesday night. “I’m very hopeful that my message of common sense leadership has reached across party lines.”
Reach Joe Duggan at 473-7239 or jduggan@journalstar.com.