Don Stenberg (born September 30, 1948) is an American lawyer and politician who served as the 31st
Attorney General of Nebraska from 1991 to 2003 and 43rd
Treasurer of Nebraska from 2011 to 2019. A member of the
Republican Party, he previously was legal counsel to
Governor
A governor is an administrative leader and head of a polity or political region, ranking under the head of state and in some cases, such as governors-general, as the head of state's official representative. Depending on the type of political ...
Charles Thone from 1979 to 1983.
He unsuccessfully ran for
Lieutenant Governor of Nebraska
The lieutenant governor of Nebraska is the highest-ranking executive official in the State of Nebraska after the governor. According to the Nebraska State Constitution, in the event a governor dies, becomes permanently incapacitated, resigns, or ...
in 1978;
Attorney General of Nebraska in 1986; and the
United States Senate
The United States Senate is the upper chamber of the United States Congress, with the House of Representatives being the lower chamber. Together they compose the national bicameral legislature of the United States.
The composition and pow ...
in
1996,
2000
File:2000 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: Protests against Bush v. Gore after the 2000 United States presidential election; Heads of state meet for the Millennium Summit; The International Space Station in its infant form as seen from S ...
,
2006, and
2012
File:2012 Events Collage V3.png, From left, clockwise: The passenger cruise ship Costa Concordia lies capsized after the Costa Concordia disaster; Damage to Casino Pier in Seaside Heights, New Jersey as a result of Hurricane Sandy; People gat ...
.
Early life, education, and law career
Stenberg was born and raised in
. To pay for college, he
detasseled corn, hauled bales, mowed lawns, and
life guarded at the local swimming pool. After graduating from
University of Nebraska–Lincoln
The University of Nebraska–Lincoln (Nebraska, NU, or UNL) is a public land-grant research university in Lincoln, Nebraska. Chartered in 1869 by the Nebraska Legislature as part of the Morrill Act of 1862, the school was known as the Univers ...
(1970),
Harvard Law School (1974), and
Harvard Business School (1974) he practiced law in
Lincoln
Lincoln most commonly refers to:
* Abraham Lincoln (1809–1865), the sixteenth president of the United States
* Lincoln, England, cathedral city and county town of Lincolnshire, England
* Lincoln, Nebraska, the capital of Nebraska, U.S.
* Lincol ...
.
Early political career (1978–1989)
1978 run for Lieutenant Governor
In 1978, Stenberg ran for
Lieutenant Governor of Nebraska
The lieutenant governor of Nebraska is the highest-ranking executive official in the State of Nebraska after the governor. According to the Nebraska State Constitution, in the event a governor dies, becomes permanently incapacitated, resigns, or ...
, coming in fourth in the Republican primary with just 13% of the vote.
Roland A. Luedtke
Roland Alfred Luedtke (January 4, 1924 – July 22, 2005) was an American politician who served as the 31st List of Lieutenant Governors of Nebraska, lieutenant governor of Nebraska from 1979 to 1983.
Luedtke was born in Lincoln, Nebraska, on Jan ...
won the primary with a plurality of 31%.
Thone administration
In 1979, he was named as Legal Counsel to Republican
Governor of Nebraska Charles Thone. Don has also served as Director of the Governor's Policy Research Office, Assistant to the Governor, and Director of the Department of Administrative Services.
1986 run for Attorney General
He first ran for
Nebraska Attorney General
The Nebraska Attorney General is the chief law enforcement officer and lawyer for the U.S. state of Nebraska.
List of attorneys general
;Parties
Notes
ReferencesAG Office document(cached)
External links
Nebraska Attorney Generalofficial ...
in 1986, but lost in the Republican primary to incumbent
Robert Spire 53%–47%.
State Attorney General (1991–2003)
Elections
In 1990, he ran for Attorney General again. In the Republican primary, he won with a plurality of 38%. In the general election, he defeated
Democrat Gene Crump 54%–46%. He won re-election in 1994 (67%) and 1998 (68%).
Tenure
Stenberg was the named defendant in the noted Supreme Court abortion case, ''
Stenberg v. Carhart
''Stenberg v. Carhart'', 530 U.S. 914 (2000), was a landmark decision of the US Supreme Court dealing with a Nebraska law which made performing " partial-birth abortion" illegal, without regard for the health of the mother. Nebraska physicians wh ...
'' 530 U.S. 914 (2000).
1996 U.S. Senate election
Stenberg first ran for the
U.S. Senate
The United States Senate is the upper chamber of the United States Congress, with the House of Representatives being the lower chamber. Together they compose the national bicameral legislature of the United States.
The composition and pow ...
in
1996 to succeed retiring Democratic U.S. Senator
J. James Exon. Initially seen as the frontrunner, he was defeated by business executive
Chuck Hagel
Charles Timothy Hagel ( born October 4, 1946)[Governor
A governor is an administrative leader and head of a polity or political region, ranking under the head of state and in some cases, such as governors-general, as the head of state's official representative. Depending on the type of political ...]
Ben Nelson.
2000 U.S. Senate election
After being re-elected Attorney General in 1998, Stenberg again ran for the U.S. Senate in
2000
File:2000 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: Protests against Bush v. Gore after the 2000 United States presidential election; Heads of state meet for the Millennium Summit; The International Space Station in its infant form as seen from S ...
to succeed retiring Democratic U.S. Senator
Bob Kerrey
Joseph Robert Kerrey (born August 27, 1943) is an American politician who served as the 35th Governor of Nebraska from 1983 to 1987 and as a United States Senator from Nebraska from 1989 to 2001. Before entering politics, he served in the Vietna ...
. He won the six candidate primary with 50% of the vote. In one of the closest elections in Nebraska history, Nelson defeated Stenberg 51%–49%, even as Republican presidential nominee
George W. Bush won the state with 62%.
Post-Attorney General career (2003–present)
Private sector
Stenberg left office as Attorney General in 2003 and returned to work in the private sector as
of counsel at Erickson and Sederstrom, the same firm where his former boss,
Charles Thone, is a partner.
2006 U.S. Senate election
In
2006, Stenberg launched his third bid for the U.S. Senate. Once again, an early frontrunner, he was defeated by former
Ameritrade chief operating officer
A chief operating officer or chief operations officer, also called a COO, is one of the highest-ranking executive positions in an organization, composing part of the " C-suite". The COO is usually the second-in-command at the firm, especially if ...
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 o ...
48%–38%. Ricketts went on to lose to incumbent U.S. Senator Nelson.
State Treasurer
In 2010, Stenberg ran for
Nebraska State Treasurer to succeed retiring
Shane Osborn. He won the primary over state Senator
Tony Fulton 52%–28% and won the general election with 73% of the vote.
2012 U.S. Senate election
In 2011, he announced his intention to run for the U.S. Senate a fourth time.
After receiving endorsements from
Club for Growth
The Club for Growth is a 501(c)(4) conservative organization active in the United States, with an agenda focused on cutting taxes and other economic policy issues. Club for Growth's largest funders are the billionaires Jeff Yass and Richard U ...
and
Freedomworks
FreedomWorks is a conservative and libertarian advocacy group based in Washington, D.C. FreedomWorks trains volunteers, assists in campaigns, and encourages them to mobilize, interacting with both fellow citizens and their political representat ...
, Stenberg split the Tea Party vote with attorney general Jon Brunning. Stenberg came in third place, taking 18.8% of the vote. The nomination went to
State senator Deb Fischer
Debra Lynelle Fischer (; born March 1, 1951) is an American politician serving as the senior United States senator from Nebraska, a seat she has held since 2013. A member of the Republican Party, Fischer was the first woman elected to a full ter ...
.
2014 election
Following the withdrawal of the two leading candidates for the Republican nomination for Governor, Stenberg said that he would consider "what is the best way to serve the state of Nebraska". He has said that it was "unlikely, but possible" that he would run for Governor. He also considered running for the open U.S. Senate seat, but decided instead to run for re-election to a second term as Treasurer.
Personal life
He is married to Sue Hoegemeyer of
Hooper, Nebraska
Hooper is a city in Dodge County, Nebraska, United States. The population was 830 at the 2010 census.
History
Hooper got its start in the year 1871, following construction of the Fremont, Elkhorn and Missouri Valley Railroad through the territo ...
. They have been married 39 years and have four children.
Electoral history
References
External links
*
*
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, -
{{DEFAULTSORT:Stenberg, Don
1948 births
21st-century American politicians
Harvard Business School alumni
Harvard Law School alumni
Living people
Nebraska Attorneys General
Nebraska lawyers
Nebraska Republicans
People from Tekamah, Nebraska
State treasurers of Nebraska
University of Nebraska–Lincoln alumni