Kleeb, Raimondo face contested primary, tough Senate race
Posted: Monday, February 25, 2008
OMAHA (AP) -- Two Nebraska Democrats will officially launch their Senate campaigns Monday, marking the beginning of what promises to be a hotly contested primary in a race where Republicans have so far held the spotlight.
Scott Kleeb will announce his candidacy in Lincoln, and Tony Raimondo will make his run official in Columbus.
Kleeb teaches history at Hastings College and Raimondo is chairman of Behlen Manufacturing in Columbus. Neither man has held public office, although Kleeb, a Yale graduate who was working as a ranch hand at the time, ran in the 3rd District House race in 2006, losing to Republican Adrian Smith.
Excitement is building among Democrats after February caucuses lured presidential hopeful Barack Obama to the state. The Illinois senator drew 68 percent of the vote to Sen. Hillary Clinton's 32 percent.
His apparent ability to reach moderates and draw new voters to the polls could bode well for Democratic Senate candidates in Nebraska.
"If ever there was a good environment for Democrats in Nebraska, it might look a lot like this," said John Comer, chairman of the political science department at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln. "You might be able to hook your star, to a degree, to an Obama candidacy."
But come November, defeating Republican Mike Johanns will be difficult at best. Johanns, a popular former governor with statewide name recognition, has been a force in Nebraska politics since the 1990s.
He stepped down as U.S. agriculture secretary in September to run for the Senate seat, which will be vacated by Republican Chuck Hagel, who isn't seeking re-election.
Two other Republicans -- Attorney General Jon Bruning and former U.S. Rep. Hal Daub -- left the Senate race to make way for Johanns. Republican Pat Flynn, a Schuyler businessman who's never run for public office, remains in the running.
The GOP also enjoys a strong majority among Nebraska voters: In the November 2006 election, there were 573,016 Republicans registered, versus 370,724 Democrats.
"You're up against it as a Democrat running for public office in Nebraska," Comer said.
The Democratic nominee will need to build consensus in the party while reaching out to moderates and Republicans, said Omaha Mayor Mike Fahey, a Democrat who decided against a Senate run earlier this year.
"With the 200,000 voter deficit, you'd better have everybody on board," said Fahey, who predicts the primary contest will bring a "good solid exchange of ideas."
People are attracted to Kleeb's charisma and command of the issues, said Nebraska Public Service Commissioner Ann Boyle, former chairwoman of the party. Even with his loss in 2006, "it took a visit by George Bush to sort of put the clamps on that campaign," she said.
Kleeb could be helped by small contributors rallying to his cause, Comer said, as well as greater name recognition helped by his 2006 bid. He surprised many with a stronger-than-expected race but still finished 10 points behind Smith in a year when Republicans across the nation were turned out of the House.
Both Raimondo and Kleeb have a steep hill to climb in terms of fundraising. Johanns already has raised more than $1.5 million since entering the race in October.
Raimondo has strong connections to the business community that could translate into an advantage over Kleeb in raising money, Comer said.
Raimondo has said he would invest $250,000 to $500,000 of his own money to kick off his campaign. His company, Behlen, had annual sales of $220 million in the fiscal year that ended in October.
Raimondo also has connections to U.S. Sen. Ben Nelson, a Democrat who calls Raimondo "one of my very best friends," although he says he won't make a primary endorsement.
But Raimondo has been skewered on political blogs and by some in the party who accuse him of changing parties just because he has a better chance of being the Democratic nominee than defeating Johanns in the Republican primary.
Even some Republicans predict Kleeb might be a stronger candidate because he'll offer a starker contrast to Johanns.
"If you're a mainline, traditional Democrat in Nebraska, Scott Kleeb gives you someone to support that you probably haven't had in a long time," said David Kramer, former chairman of the state GOP. Kramer said Johanns is still the obvious favorite.
"If Mr. Raimondo is the candidate, I would predict that more Democrats would vote for Secretary Johanns than Mr. Raimondo," he said.
But many Democrats said they're willing to give Raimondo a chance.
"I'm sure Tony Raimondo will tell us in the next couple months why he's proud to be a Democrat," said Vince Powers, Democratic national committeeman. "I think that both of them would bring tremendous strengths."
Also running is Democrat Larry Marvin of Fremont, who says he's only available for politics on Saturdays and that the media can glean information from his speeches to Democrats.
It's important, Fahey said, for the Democratic candidates to "take the high road" and focus on the issues and their experience.
"We plan on running a very positive primary campaign that looks at the need for new leadership," said Eric Fought, Raimondo's campaign manager.
But Comer predicts the primary race will turn negative, and said that often doesn't settle well with Nebraskans.
"This is going to be a contest between two ambitious people who are, I'm sure, going to resort to whatever it takes to win," Comer said.
As for which Democrat will come out victorious: "I think it's a roll of the dice in the primary," Comer said.
Johanns won't take the race for granted, said Barry Rubin, former executive director of the state Democrats, and "he's going to be tough to beat in November."
But, Rubin said, "crazier things have happened."
Scott Kleeb will announce his candidacy in Lincoln, and Tony Raimondo will make his run official in Columbus.
Kleeb teaches history at Hastings College and Raimondo is chairman of Behlen Manufacturing in Columbus. Neither man has held public office, although Kleeb, a Yale graduate who was working as a ranch hand at the time, ran in the 3rd District House race in 2006, losing to Republican Adrian Smith.
Excitement is building among Democrats after February caucuses lured presidential hopeful Barack Obama to the state. The Illinois senator drew 68 percent of the vote to Sen. Hillary Clinton's 32 percent.
His apparent ability to reach moderates and draw new voters to the polls could bode well for Democratic Senate candidates in Nebraska.
"If ever there was a good environment for Democrats in Nebraska, it might look a lot like this," said John Comer, chairman of the political science department at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln. "You might be able to hook your star, to a degree, to an Obama candidacy."
But come November, defeating Republican Mike Johanns will be difficult at best. Johanns, a popular former governor with statewide name recognition, has been a force in Nebraska politics since the 1990s.
He stepped down as U.S. agriculture secretary in September to run for the Senate seat, which will be vacated by Republican Chuck Hagel, who isn't seeking re-election.
Two other Republicans -- Attorney General Jon Bruning and former U.S. Rep. Hal Daub -- left the Senate race to make way for Johanns. Republican Pat Flynn, a Schuyler businessman who's never run for public office, remains in the running.
The GOP also enjoys a strong majority among Nebraska voters: In the November 2006 election, there were 573,016 Republicans registered, versus 370,724 Democrats.
"You're up against it as a Democrat running for public office in Nebraska," Comer said.
The Democratic nominee will need to build consensus in the party while reaching out to moderates and Republicans, said Omaha Mayor Mike Fahey, a Democrat who decided against a Senate run earlier this year.
"With the 200,000 voter deficit, you'd better have everybody on board," said Fahey, who predicts the primary contest will bring a "good solid exchange of ideas."
People are attracted to Kleeb's charisma and command of the issues, said Nebraska Public Service Commissioner Ann Boyle, former chairwoman of the party. Even with his loss in 2006, "it took a visit by George Bush to sort of put the clamps on that campaign," she said.
Kleeb could be helped by small contributors rallying to his cause, Comer said, as well as greater name recognition helped by his 2006 bid. He surprised many with a stronger-than-expected race but still finished 10 points behind Smith in a year when Republicans across the nation were turned out of the House.
Both Raimondo and Kleeb have a steep hill to climb in terms of fundraising. Johanns already has raised more than $1.5 million since entering the race in October.
Raimondo has strong connections to the business community that could translate into an advantage over Kleeb in raising money, Comer said.
Raimondo has said he would invest $250,000 to $500,000 of his own money to kick off his campaign. His company, Behlen, had annual sales of $220 million in the fiscal year that ended in October.
Raimondo also has connections to U.S. Sen. Ben Nelson, a Democrat who calls Raimondo "one of my very best friends," although he says he won't make a primary endorsement.
But Raimondo has been skewered on political blogs and by some in the party who accuse him of changing parties just because he has a better chance of being the Democratic nominee than defeating Johanns in the Republican primary.
Even some Republicans predict Kleeb might be a stronger candidate because he'll offer a starker contrast to Johanns.
"If you're a mainline, traditional Democrat in Nebraska, Scott Kleeb gives you someone to support that you probably haven't had in a long time," said David Kramer, former chairman of the state GOP. Kramer said Johanns is still the obvious favorite.
"If Mr. Raimondo is the candidate, I would predict that more Democrats would vote for Secretary Johanns than Mr. Raimondo," he said.
But many Democrats said they're willing to give Raimondo a chance.
"I'm sure Tony Raimondo will tell us in the next couple months why he's proud to be a Democrat," said Vince Powers, Democratic national committeeman. "I think that both of them would bring tremendous strengths."
Also running is Democrat Larry Marvin of Fremont, who says he's only available for politics on Saturdays and that the media can glean information from his speeches to Democrats.
It's important, Fahey said, for the Democratic candidates to "take the high road" and focus on the issues and their experience.
"We plan on running a very positive primary campaign that looks at the need for new leadership," said Eric Fought, Raimondo's campaign manager.
But Comer predicts the primary race will turn negative, and said that often doesn't settle well with Nebraskans.
"This is going to be a contest between two ambitious people who are, I'm sure, going to resort to whatever it takes to win," Comer said.
As for which Democrat will come out victorious: "I think it's a roll of the dice in the primary," Comer said.
Johanns won't take the race for granted, said Barry Rubin, former executive director of the state Democrats, and "he's going to be tough to beat in November."
But, Rubin said, "crazier things have happened."
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