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Dave Heineman

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For the Michigan lawyer and businessman David Emil Heineman, see Flag of Detroit.
Dave Heineman
Official portrait, 2006
39th Governor of Nebraska
In office
January 20, 2005 – January 8, 2015
LieutenantRick Sheehy
Lavon Heidemann
John Nelson
Preceded byMike Johanns
Succeeded byPete Ricketts
Chair of the National Governors Association
In office
July 17, 2011 – July 15, 2012
Preceded byChristine Gregoire
Succeeded byJack Markell
37th Lieutenant Governor of Nebraska
In office
October 1, 2001 – January 20, 2005
GovernorMike Johanns
Preceded byDavid Maurstad
Succeeded byRick Sheehy
39th Treasurer of Nebraska
In office
January 2, 1995 – October 1, 2001
GovernorBen Nelson
Mike Johanns
Preceded byDawn Rockey
Succeeded byLorelee Hunt Byrd
Personal details
Born
David Eugene Heineman

(1948-05-12) May 12, 1948 (age 76)
Falls City, Nebraska, U.S.
Political partyRepublican
SpouseSally Ganem
Children1
EducationUnited States Military Academy (BS)
Military service
AllegianceUnited States
Branch/serviceUnited States Army
Years of service1970–1975
RankCaptain
UnitArmy Ranger

David Eugene Heineman (born May 12, 1948) is an American politician who served as the 39th governor of Nebraska from 2005 to 2015. A member of the Republican Party, he was the 39th treasurer of Nebraska from 1995 to 2001 and 37th lieutenant governor of Nebraska from 2001 to 2005 under governor Mike Johanns. Heineman took over the governorship after Johanns resigned to become the U.S. Secretary of Agriculture.

Heineman won full four-year terms in the 2006 and 2010 elections. Due to this, he is the longest-serving Nebraska Governor with just under 10 years of service. Heineman was barred by term limits from seeking a third full four-year term in 2014 as the Constitution of Nebraska prohibits governors from seeking a third term. He was succeeded by businessman Pete Ricketts.

Early life and education

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Heineman was born in Falls City, Nebraska, the son of Irene (née Larkin) and Jean T. Heineman, a stock manager for J. C. Penney.[1] He lived in a variety of places in eastern Nebraska during his youth, eventually attending high school in Wahoo, Nebraska. He graduated from the United States Military Academy in 1970. He served five years in the U.S. Army, leaving with the rank of captain. He also graduated from the Army Ranger training program.[2]

Career

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Heineman served on the Fremont City Council from 1990 to 1994. He also served two terms as Nebraska State Treasurer from 1995 to 2001. He was appointed the 37th Lieutenant Governor of Nebraska by Governor Mike Johanns on October 1, 2001 after David Maurstad resigned to take a post in the administration of George W. Bush. He was elected to his first full term as Nebraska Lieutenant Governor in 2002 as Johanns's running mate.

Governor of Nebraska

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Heineman (left) with Secretary of Health and Human Services Mike Leavitt (center) and predecessor Mike Johanns (right) in 2006
Former Governor of Virginia Gerald L. Baliles, Governor of Nebraska Dave Heineman and former Governor of Wyoming Jim Geringer at the Miller Center Higher Education Conference in 2010

Heineman became governor on January 20, 2005, following Mike Johanns's resignation to become United States Secretary of Agriculture in President George W. Bush's Cabinet. On April 11, 2005, he announced that he would be seeking election to a full four-year term. He had the backing of Nebraska Senator Chuck Hagel, although he faced a difficult challenge in the Republican primary from former Nebraska Cornhuskers football coach and U.S. Representative Tom Osborne. He took 49 percent of the more than 197,000 votes cast and Osborne 45 percent.[3]

In the November 7, 2006 general election, Heineman defeated Democratic nominee David Hahn, securing 73.4% of the vote to Hahn's 24.5%.[4] The Lincoln Journal Star's analysis of the 2006 gubernatorial race attributed Heineman's win to his opposition to Class I rural school reorganization and the granting of resident college tuition rates to the children of undocumented immigrants, helping him win over rural voters. This proved critical in the primary. While Osborne carried most of the Omaha and Lincoln areas, which cast more than two-thirds of Nebraska's vote, Heineman won by sufficient margins in western and central Nebraska to secure the nomination.[5]

In 2010, Heineman signed two bills restricting abortion. One bill banned abortions at and after 20 weeks of pregnancy, based on the claim that fetuses of that age can feel pain; the other required that women seeking abortions be screened for mental-health problems.[6]

Heineman was reelected in 2010 with 73.9 percent of the vote to Democratic nominee Mike Meister's 26.1%.[7] In June 2011, Heineman became the first sitting governor to endorse Mitt Romney's presidential campaign.[8]

As of 2012 Heineman worked with the Nebraska Legislature to pass the "largest tax relief package in Nebraska history". His website describes him as a "leader for Nebraska’s agricultural industry", stating that he secured trade deals for the export of wheat, soybeans and other commodities.[9]

In January 2013, he approved a revised route for the Keystone Pipeline, that would avoid the environmentally sensitive Sandhills region, but cut through the High Plains Aquifer.[10] Heineman was able to do this after a 2012 state law "let oil pipeline companies take their projects directly to the governor, bypassing the Nebraska Public Service Commission", which Nebraska justices upheld even though a lower court had blocked this law.[11]

In March 2014, together with Nebraska Attorney General Jon Bruning, Heineman brought Nebraska into a lawsuit filed by Missouri Attorney General Chris Koster against California's egg production standards; in a press release, Heineman stated "This is about protecting Nebraska’s farmers and ranchers from the potential for regulatory burdens that hamper interstate trade."[12] In October 2014, federal judge Kimberly Mueller dismissed the lawsuit, rejecting the states' challenge to Proposition 2, California's prohibition on the sale of eggs laid by caged hens kept in conditions more restrictive than those approved by California voters in a 2008 ballot initiative.[13][14][15][16] Heineman had previously squared off against the Humane Society of the U.S., a champion of Proposition 2.[17]

In April 2014, Heineman signed a bill striking the word "firearms" from the list of those items a governor may suspend during a state of emergency.[18] In January 2015, Heinemann relinquished the governorship of Nebraska due to term limits.[19] He was succeeded by fellow Republican Pete Ricketts.[19]

In 2019, Heineman announced his support for Janet Palmtag in her candidacy for the Nebraska legislature.[20]

Personal life

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Heineman is married to Sally Ganem, a former elementary school principal. They have one son.[21]

See also

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References

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  1. ^ "Governor Heineman's father, Jean, dies at 87". 28 July 2007. Archived from the original on 2018-07-23. Retrieved 2014-01-24.
  2. ^ "About The Governor". Archived from the original on 2008-07-04. Retrieved 2008-07-30.
  3. ^ Ellis, Jim. "Former Cornhusker coach mostly enjoyed brief career as politician". The Miami News. Archived from the original on 23 July 2018. Retrieved 23 July 2018.
  4. ^ "Official Report of the Board of State Canvassers of the State of Nebraska: General Election, November 7, 2006" Archived January 13, 2015, at the Wayback Machine, p. 1. Retrieved 2015-01-12.
  5. ^ Don Walton (2006-05-10). "Gov. turns back Osborne". JournalStar.com. Archived from the original on 2007-10-19. Retrieved 2008-07-30.
  6. ^ "Nebraska Governor Signs Landmark Abortion Bills". Fox News. April 13, 2010. Archived from the original on April 17, 2010. Retrieved April 14, 2010.
  7. ^ "Official Report of the Board of State Canvassers of the State of Nebraska: General Election, November 2, 2010" Archived October 23, 2014, at the Wayback Machine, p. 11. Retrieved 2015-01-12.
  8. ^ "Romney gets first gov". Politico. 10 June 2011. Archived from the original on 2012-10-24. Retrieved 2014-10-17.
  9. ^ "About The Governor". Archived 2008-10-05 at the Wayback Machine Governor Dave Heineman. Archived 2012-11-20 at the Wayback Machine Retrieved 2012-12-06.
  10. ^ Aamer Madhani (22 January 2013). "Nebraska governor approves Keystone pipeline". USA news. Archived from the original on 7 June 2015. Retrieved 12 January 2015.
  11. ^ CORAL DAVENPORT and MITCH SMITH (9 January 2015). "Obama Facing Rising Pressure on Keystone Oil Pipeline". NY Times. Archived from the original on 12 January 2015. Retrieved 12 January 2015.
  12. ^ "Nebraska joins California lawsuit over egg issues." Archived 2014-03-13 at the Wayback Machine Lincoln Journal Star. Archived 2010-04-26 at the Wayback Machine 2014-03-05. Retrieved 2014-10-14.
  13. ^ "Nebraska joins Missouri's lawsuit against California". 6 March 2014. Archived from the original on 2014-10-19. Retrieved 2014-10-09.
  14. ^ "Judge tosses suit by 6 states over California law on eggs". 3 October 2014. Archived from the original on 2015-01-07. Retrieved 2015-01-05.
  15. ^ "Lawsuit against California egg law dismissed - FDA report stokes debate over antibiotics - U.S. Revokes special treatment for Canadian produce". Politico. 3 October 2014. Archived from the original on 2014-10-10. Retrieved 2015-03-06.
  16. ^ "Judge tosses lawsuit challenging California egg laws - Capitol Alert - the Sacramento Bee". Archived from the original on 2014-10-06. Retrieved 2015-01-05.
  17. ^ "State Fair provides stage to proclaim agriculture's importance (AUDIO)". Archived from the original on 2014-10-13. Retrieved 2014-10-17.
  18. ^ "NRA-ILA | Nebraska Emergency Powers Protection Bill Signed into Law". Archived from the original on 2014-10-23. Retrieved 2014-10-17.
  19. ^ a b Tysver, Robynn (16 September 2016). "Dave Heineman not taking a 2018 run for governor off the table". Omaha.com. Archived from the original on 2020-02-21. Retrieved 2020-02-21.
  20. ^ "Janet Palmtag announces candidacy for Nebraska Legislature". Nebraska City News-Press - Nebraska City, NE. Archived from the original on 2020-02-21. Retrieved 2020-02-21.
  21. ^ "First Lady - Sally Ganem". Archived from the original on 2008-07-04. Retrieved 2008-07-30.
[edit]
Political offices
Preceded by
Dawn Rockey
 Treasurer of Nebraska
1995–2001 		Succeeded by
Lorelee Hunt Byrd
Preceded by Lieutenant Governor of Nebraska
2001–2005 		Succeeded by
Preceded by Governor of Nebraska
2005–2015 		Succeeded by
Preceded by Chair of National Governors Association
2011–2012 		Succeeded by
Party political offices
Preceded by Republican nominee for Nebraska State Treasurer
1994, 1998 		Succeeded by
Lorelee Hunt Byrd
Preceded by Republican nominee for Lieutenant Governor of Nebraska
2002 		Succeeded by
Preceded by Republican nominee for Governor of Nebraska
2006, 2010 		Succeeded by
U.S. order of precedence (ceremonial)
Preceded byas Former Governor Order of precedence of the United States
Within Nebraska 		Succeeded byas Former Governor
Order of precedence of the United States
Outside Nebraska 		Succeeded byas Former Governor
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