352,267 121,994 Start date November 2, 2010 | 74.3% 25.7% | |
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Winner Dave Heineman | ||
The 2010 Nebraska gubernatorial election was held on Tuesday, November 2, 2010 to elect the Governor of Nebraska, who will serve a four-year term to begin in January 2011. Republican incumbent Dave Heineman won, defeating Democrat Mike Meister. Heineman easily won his party's nomination. Mark Lakers ran unopposed in the Democratic primary, but dropped out in July 2010. Attorney Mike Meister was chosen as a replacement.
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Lakers was unopposed for the Democratic nomination. However, he dropped out of the race on July 2, 2010, due to a scandal involving campaign fundraising. Several donors listed on a campaign finance report denied ever giving money to Lakers, prompting criticism from both parties.
After being forced from the race due to investigations by the Nebraska Attorney General's Office and the Nebraska Campaign Disclosure Board, Lakers pleaded guilty in September to falsifying his campaign finance reports. As part of the plea, Lakers admitted that 51 of the 80 pledges listed on his reports were false.
Mike Meister, the Democratic nominee for Attorney General of Nebraska in 2002, was selected to replace him and he selected Nebraska Public Service Commissioner and former Chairwoman of the Democratic Party of Nebraska Anne Boyle as his running mate.