Dan Hughes (born June 5, 1956) is an American politician from the state of
Nebraska
Nebraska () is a state in the Midwestern region of the United States. It is bordered by South Dakota to the north; Iowa to the east and Missouri to the southeast, both across the Missouri River; Kansas to the south; Colorado to the southwe ...
in the
Midwestern United States
The Midwestern United States, also referred to as the Midwest or the American Midwest, is one of four census regions of the United States Census Bureau (also known as "Region 2"). It occupies the northern central part of the United States. I ...
. In 2014, he was elected to the
Nebraska Legislature
The Nebraska Legislature (also called the Unicameral) is the legislature of the U.S. state of Nebraska. The Legislature meets at the Nebraska State Capitol in Lincoln. With 49 members, known as "senators", the Nebraska Legislature is the small ...
, representing a district in the southwestern part of the state. Hughes is a member of the
Republican Party
Republican Party is a name used by many political parties around the world, though the term most commonly refers to the United States' Republican Party.
Republican Party may also refer to:
Africa
*Republican Party (Liberia)
* Republican Part ...
.
Early life and career
Hughes was born on June 5, 1956, in
Imperial, Nebraska
Imperial is a city in Chase County, Nebraska, United States. The population was 2,071 at the 2010 census. It is the county seat of Chase County.
History
The original town of Imperial was built on land homesteaded by Thomas Mercier and M.J. Good ...
, to a family of farmers. He graduated from high school in
Venango, Nebraska
Venango is a village in Perkins County, Nebraska, United States. The population was 157 at the 2020 U.S. census.
History
Venango was platted in 1887 when the railroad was extended to that point. It was likely named after Venango County, Pennsylva ...
, in 1974. In 1976, he received an
associate degree
An associate degree is an undergraduate degree awarded after a course of post-secondary study lasting two to three years. It is a level of qualification above a high school diploma, GED, or matriculation, and below a bachelor's degree.
The fi ...
in agriculture from
Northeastern Junior College
Northeastern Junior College (NJC) is a public community college in Sterling, Colorado. It is a member college of the Colorado Community College System. In 2021 Colorado legislators and college administrators considered changing the college name ...
in
Sterling, Colorado
Sterling is a home rule municipality and the county seat and most populous municipality of Logan County, Colorado, United States. Sterling is the principal city of the Sterling, CO Micropolitan Statistical Area. The city population was 13,753 a ...
. In 1977, he married Josie Hahn; the couple eventually produced two children.
[
After receiving his degree, Hughes joined his family's wheat-farming operation in southwestern Nebraska. As of 2011, they farmed about .][
From 1993 to 1999, Hughes served on the Nebraska Ethanol Board, a state agency created to promote development of the ]ethanol
Ethanol (abbr. EtOH; also called ethyl alcohol, grain alcohol, drinking alcohol, or simply alcohol) is an organic compound. It is an Alcohol (chemistry), alcohol with the chemical formula . Its formula can be also written as or (an ethyl ...
industry. From 2006 to 2014, he served on the Nebraska Wheat Board, a state agency tasked with promoting the domestic and foreign consumption of wheat and wheat products. In 2012 and 2013, he served as chair of U.S. Wheat Associates, a national organization that promotes export sales of U.S. wheat.[
From 1998 to 2010, Hughes was a member of the school board for the city of ]Grant, Nebraska
Grant is a city and county seat of Perkins County, Nebraska, United States. The population was 1,165 at the 2010 census.
History
Grant was platted in 1886 when the Chicago, Burlington and Quincy Railroad was extended to that point. The city i ...
and, following consolidation, Perkins County.[
]
Nebraska legislature
2014 election
In August 2013, Hughes announced that he would seek a seat in the Nebraska Legislature
The Nebraska Legislature (also called the Unicameral) is the legislature of the U.S. state of Nebraska. The Legislature meets at the Nebraska State Capitol in Lincoln. With 49 members, known as "senators", the Nebraska Legislature is the small ...
representing the 44th District. The district consisted of ten counties in the southwestern portion of the state—Chase
Chase or CHASE may refer to:
Businesses
* Chase Bank, a national bank based in New York City, New York
* Chase Aircraft (1943–1954), a defunct American aircraft manufacturing company
* Chase Coaches, a defunct bus operator in England
* Chase Co ...
, Dundy, Frontier
A frontier is the political and geographical area near or beyond a boundary. A frontier can also be referred to as a "front". The term came from French in the 15th century, with the meaning "borderland"—the region of a country that fronts o ...
, Furnas
Furnas is a civil parish in the municipality of Povoação on the island of São Miguel in the Portuguese Azores. The population in 2011 was 1,439, in an area of 34.43 km2. The parish is one of the largest in the island and in the Azores. I ...
, Gosper, Harlan
Harlan is a given name and a surname which may refer to:
Surname
*Bob Harlan (born 1936 Robert E. Harlan), American football executive
*Bruce Harlan (1926–1959), American Olympic diver
*Byron B. Harlan (1886–1949), American politician
*Byron G ...
, Hayes
Hayes may refer to:
* Hayes (surname), including a list of people with the name
** Rutherford B. Hayes, 19th president of the United States
* Hayes (given name)
Businesses
* Hayes Brake, an American designer and manufacturer of disc brakes
* Ha ...
, Hitchcock
Sir Alfred Joseph Hitchcock (13 August 1899 – 29 April 1980) was an English filmmaker. He is widely regarded as one of the most influential figures in the history of cinema. In a career spanning six decades, he directed over 50 featur ...
, Perkins
Perkins is a surname derived from the Anglo-Saxon corruption of the kin of Pierre (from Pierre kin to Pierrekin to Perkins), introduced into England by the Norman Conquest. It is found throughout mid- and southern England.
Another derivation com ...
, and Red Willow counties—and included the cities of McCook, Imperial
Imperial is that which relates to an empire, emperor, or imperialism.
Imperial or The Imperial may also refer to:
Places
United States
* Imperial, California
* Imperial, Missouri
* Imperial, Nebraska
* Imperial, Pennsylvania
* Imperial, Texa ...
, and Alma
Alma or ALMA may refer to:
Arts and entertainment
* ''Alma'' (film), a 2009 Spanish short animated film
* ''Alma'' (Oswald de Andrade novel), 1922
* ''Alma'' (Le Clézio novel), 2017
* ''Alma'' (play), a 1996 drama by Joshua Sobol about Alma ...
. Under Nebraska's term-limits law, the incumbent, Mark Christensen, was ineligible to run for a third consecutive term.[
]
2014 primary
Hughes was one of three candidates for the position; all three were members of the Republican Party
Republican Party is a name used by many political parties around the world, though the term most commonly refers to the United States' Republican Party.
Republican Party may also refer to:
Africa
*Republican Party (Liberia)
* Republican Part ...
. Dennis Berry was the mayor of McCook, a position that he had held for ten years; he was about to retire as principal of McCook Junior High. Steve Stroup was a farmer from Benkelman, and operated a small medical-coding business.[
The three candidates agreed that water, which the '']McCook Gazette
The ''McCook Daily Gazette'' is a newspaper published in the city of McCook, in the southwestern part of the state of Nebraska, in the Great Plains region of the United States. It serves southwestern Nebraska and northwestern Kansas. The news ...
'' called "arguably the hottest topic in Southwest Nebraska", and property taxes were among the most salient issues for the 44th District. The candidates emphasized their backgrounds rather than the differences in their political positions. Berry noted his experience as mayor, and said that his background in education would help him in addressing what he suggested was insufficient state funding for schools; he noted that he had grown up doing agricultural work in the Nebraska Panhandle
The Nebraska Panhandle is an area in the western part of the state of Nebraska and one of several U.S. state panhandles, or elongated geographical regions that extend from their main political entity.
The Nebraska panhandle is two-thirds as br ...
, and said that he had sufficient knowledge of agriculture to represent the district effectively. Hughes called attention to his career as a farmer, and stated that his experience on the school board and in various commodity organizations had given him communication and relationship-building skills that would be useful in the legislature. Stroup also emphasized his farming background, and argued that his experience operating a business would make him an effective legislator.[
As of two weeks before the May 13 primary, Hughes had raised the most money for his campaign, with receipts of $29,000. Berry had raised nearly $16,000 by that date, and Stroup almost $7,000.][
When the nonpartisan primary election was held, Hughes won a plurality, with 3559 votes, or 40.0% of the total. Stroup came in second, with 3145 votes, or 35.3%; Berry received 2199 votes, or 24.7%. As the top two vote-getters, Hughes and Stroup moved on to the general election.][
]
2014 general election
As in the primary election, Hughes and Stroup campaigned largely on their experience and personal qualities rather than on their political differences. Both candidates opposed a proposed increase in the state's minimum wage; both supported the construction of the Keystone XL pipeline
The Keystone Pipeline System is an oil pipeline system in Canada and the United States, commissioned in 2010 and owned by TC Energy and as of 31 March 2020 the Government of Alberta. It runs from the Western Canadian Sedimentary Basin in Albert ...
through Nebraska; both opposed the proposed expansion of Medicaid
Medicaid in the United States is a federal and state program that helps with healthcare costs for some people with limited income and resources. Medicaid also offers benefits not normally covered by Medicare, including nursing home care and pers ...
under the provisions of the 2010 Affordable Care Act
The Affordable Care Act (ACA), formally known as the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act and colloquially known as Obamacare, is a landmark U.S. federal statute enacted by the 111th United States Congress and signed into law by Presid ...
; both opposed the abolition of capital punishment; and both believed that illegal immigration was a problem in Nebraska.[
The candidates agreed that property taxes on farms needed to be reduced. Hughes proposed a sales tax on food as a means of making up the revenue lost thereby; Stroup proposed a "transaction tax" which, unlike a property tax, would not have to be paid in years in which a farmer's crop was lost to hail or other disaster. The two also differed on how to fund maintenance and construction of roads and bridges: Stroup supported an increase in the state's fuel tax; Hughes favored policies that he said would lead to economic growth, which in turn would produce higher sales- and income-tax revenues.][
Hughes maintained that his twelve years of school-board experience had left him with leadership qualities that would make him a more effective legislator. Stroup cited his 35 years of farming, ranching, and business experience, and declared that he was willing to consider issues on their merits rather than basing his votes chiefly on party positions.][
Over the course of the entire campaign, Hughes received contributions of about $70,000, loaned his campaign an additional $17,000, and spent $102,000. Stroup received contributions of $59,000, loaned his campaign $6,100, and spent $67,000. Hughes's receipts included $2,500 from Republican gubernatorial candidate ]Pete Ricketts
John Peter Ricketts (born August 19, 1964) is an American politician serving as the 40th governor of Nebraska since 2015. He is a member of the Republican Party.
Ricketts is the son of Joe Ricketts, founder of TD Ameritrade. He is also, with oth ...
; Stroup received $5,800 from WaterClaim, a group of irrigators in the Republican River
The Republican River is a river in the central Great Plains of North America, rising in the High Plains (United States), High Plains of eastern Colorado and flowing east U.S. Geological Survey. National Hydrography Dataset high-resolution flowline ...
basin, and $2,000 from Nebraska Colorado Cellular, doing business as Viaero Wireless. Several major contributors provided money to both candidates, among them the Nebraska Realtors PAC, which gave $3,000 to Hughes and $2,500 to Stroup; the Nebraska Bankers PAC, which gave $2,600 to Hughes and $1,000 to Stroup; and the AGC Highway Improvement PAC, which gave Hughes $2,000 and Stroup $500.[
When the general election was held, Hughes won 6,924 votes, or 57% of the total; Stroup received 5,189 votes, or 43%.][
]
References
External links
Hughes's Nebraska Legislature website
Dan Hughes for Legislature
2014 campaign website; archived at Wayback Machine
{{DEFAULTSORT:Hughes, Dan
1956 births
21st-century American politicians
Living people
Republican Party Nebraska state senators
People from Chase County, Nebraska
People from Grant, Nebraska