Dave Heineman

Dave Heineman

42^nd Governor of Nebraska
Incumbent
Assumed office January 20, 2005
Lieutenant(s)	Rick Sheehy
Preceded by	Mike Johanns
Succeeded by	Incumbent

Born	May 12, 1948 (age 58) Falls City, Nebraska
Political party	Republican
Spouse	Sally Ganem Heineman
Profession	Congressional Chief of Staff Office Manager
Religion	Methodist

Heineman (left) with HHS Secretary Mike Leavitt (center), and predecessor Mike Johanns (right) in 2006.

David Eugene "Dave" Heineman (born May 12, 1948, in Falls City, Nebraska) is an American Republican politician who currently serves as the Governor of Nebraska.

Heineman graduated from the United States Military Academy in 1970. He served two terms as the Nebraska State Treasurer from 1994 to 2001 and was appointed to the office of Lieutenant Governor of Nebraska on October 1, 2001, and was elected to his first full term in 2002.

He became Governor on January 20, 2005, following Mike Johanns' resignation to become United States Secretary of Agriculture in President George W. Bush's Cabinet. On April 11, 2005, Heineman announced that he would be seeking election to a full four-year term. He had the backing of Nebraska Senator Chuck Hagel, though he faced a difficult challenge in the Republican primary from former Nebraska Cornhuskers football coach and U.S. Representative Tom Osborne. Heineman took 49 percent of the more than 197,000 votes cast, and Osborne 45 percent [1]. The Lincoln Journal Star's analysis of the 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 illegal immigrants, helping him win over rural voters. [2]

Heineman defeated Democratic nominee David Hahn in the November 7, 2006, general election, capturing 76 percent of the vote.

[edit] External links

Preceded by Dawn E. Rockey	State Treasurer of Nebraska 1995–2001	Succeeded by Lorelee Hunt Byrd
Preceded by David I. Maurstad	Lieutenant Governor of Nebraska 2001–2005	Succeeded by Rick Sheehy
Preceded by Mike Johanns	Governor of Nebraska 2005 – present	Incumbent