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Kurt Johnson
Whom shall I vote for, and why?
Area residents are starting to ponder that question with the May 10 primary election now just over a month away and the News-Register would like to help in that subjective process by providing personal profiles on candidates in races of local interest.
Political ads have begun flooding the airwaves, a sure sign that the voting booth (or mail-in ballot envelopes) will be opening soon. People want to know who they are voting for, though modern-day campaigns often end up taking a negative slant the higher the stakes get for elected office, with this year’s GOP Nebraska primary for governor sadly another prime example. Folks around here would much prefer to see potential heads of state take the high road, touting their own skillset and platform rather than going low to discredit their opponent, but that seems to be the rules of engagement in 2022.
Fortunately, that’s not the case in Hamilton County, where several races are being contested. In an effort to help would-be voters better understand their choices, we have invited local candidates to share some insight on their background, reasons for running, and what they see as priority issues in their respective jurisdictions.
There are a number of local races that will not be decided until November, involving seats on the Aurora City Council and 4R Aurora School Board, for example. You can expect to see Phase 2 of our candidate profile series in print come October.
As for the contested primary elections, profiles will be published as follows:
March 30 — Hamilton County Board of Commissioners District 1 race, featuring Joseph Sandmeier and Nicole SaBell;
April 6 — Giltner School Board race featuring Ross Lyon, Nate Most, Jamie Bendorf, Brandon Hunnicutt, Chris Waddle, Logan Rath, Lori Humphrey and Joel Hinrichs;
April 6 — Dist. 34 legislative race, featuring Loren Lippincott and Mike Reimers;
April 13 — Hamilton County Board of Commissioners District 5 race, featuring Roger Nunnenkamp and Francis McDonald;
April 13 — Nebraska State Board of Education District 5 race, featuring Kirk Penner and Helen Raikes.
This profile series will be a good read, frankly, challenging candidates to put their thoughts, goals and objectives in writing. I’ve had a number of readers ask when we will be publishing our traditional pre-election coverage, which confirms that it is well-read and useful.
We thank the candidates in advance for their participation and invite reader/voters to clip and save to help make an informed decision.
Kurt Johnson
