Many Voters Changed Party
Affiliation Prior To Primary Election

By Gordon HopkinsVoting for the Nebraska primary election took place on Tuesday, May 10, 2022. Election Commissioner Kristina Riggle reported, “Our overall voter turnout was about 41 percent, which is up slightly for a primary election here.”Like most of the rest of the state of Nebraska, Jefferson County saw a rush of party affiliation changes in the run up to the primary. “Riggle told FJN, “We did see an increase in party changes leading up to the primary election. This was reported as a trend statewide as well.”Riggle noted the changes were, “A mix of all other parties changing to Republican.”Nebraska is a closed primary state. That means only those who are registered with a particular party had the opportunity to vote in that party’s primary for partisan candidates.Riggle said, “Election day went very well. I am truly appreciative of all the poll workers and election staff for making our local election process go smoothly.”While preliminary results have been posted by the election commissioner, results are not final until they have been certified. Riggle indicated she expects final results to be certified this week.SheriffIncumbent Sheriff Nick Georgi will keep his job, according to Jefferson County voters. Georgi was appointed to the position last year by Jefferson County Commissioners after the previous Sheriff, Matt Schultz, resigned.Georgi was one of three candidates running for Jefferson County Sheriff. The second candidate was Cody Barry, a deputy with the Jefferson County Sheriff’s Office who was one of five candidates under consideration when commissioners were searching for Sheriff Schultz’s replacement. The third candidate was Wilbur Young, a former deputy who was fired from the Sheriff’s Office last year after being accused of failing to serve a felony warrant. He was charged, tried and found not guilty by a jury.According to preliminary results, Georgi received a total of 843 votes, Barry was second with 382 votes and Young third with 366. There was also a single write-in vote.All three of the candidates ran as Republicans. There were no Democrat or other party-affiliated candidates, which means that Georgi will have no official opposition in the general election in November 2022.After the results were reported, Georgi told FJN, “I am beyond grateful for all the support I received through this election. I couldn’t have made this possible without the support from my family, current staff, and the many citizens of Jefferson County. I care about this community a lot and want to do what I can to make it better. As we know I am elected by the people of this county. Moving forward I look forward to hearing and working with the citizens of this County in regards to the Law Enforcement. I hope to get out more and reach citizens of this county to hear straight from them. I also encourage citizens to reach out to me if there is a concern or thoughts on law enforcement in this County I want to hear about it! Again, I am beyond grateful with the outcome of this election and look forward to working with the citizens of this county!”GovernorNebraska businessman Jim Pillen managed to beat back several challengers, including former President Donald J. Trump’s preferred candidate, Charles Herbster, in a hotly contested and crowded run for the Republican gubernatorial candidacy. Pillen was backed by Governor Pete Ricketts.While Jefferson County’s final tally of votes will not be officials until certified, votes cast in the governor’s race largely reflected the state as a hole, with Pillen receiving the most votes with 583 of a total 1,609 votes in the county cast. Herbster was a close second with 554 votes. Third was Brett Lindstrom, who had the lead early on in the race. He received 371 total votes in the county.The Democratic race was nowhere near as close, with Carol Blood getting 156 votes versus Roy Harris’ 45 in Jefferson County.The Libertarian Party had one candidate, Scott Zimmerman.Pillen, Blood and Zimmerman will go on to face each other in the general election on Tuesday, November 8, 2022. Whoever wins will succeed Governor Ricketts, who was unable to run again due to term limits.Third Congressional DistrictIncumbent Adrian Smith defeated his Republican opponent, Mike Calhoun, in the race for the Third Congressional District, which includes Jefferson County. He will go on to face Democrat David Elsen the general election.State Board of Education, District 5Republican Kirk Penner of Aurora defeated Helen Raikes in the race for Nebraska State Board of Education - District 5. Penner has already been serving in that role since he was appointed by Governor Pete Ricketts in December of 2021, replacing former board member Patricia Timm.District 5 represents communities in southeastern Nebraska, which includes Jefferson County.Public Service Commissioner, District 4Geneva Mayor Eric Kamler defeated incumbent Rod Johnson for District 4 Public Service Commissioner. Johnson of Sutton has held the position for 30 yearsDistrict 4 of the Public Service Commission covers 31 counties in Nebraska, including southeast Nebraska.Kamler appeared in Fairbury in April of this year during his campaign. He told FJN, “I’d say 90 percent of the job will be about broadband infrastructure.”

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