Two Nebraskans with ties to the direct marketing industry lost political races on Nov. 5.
Stormy Dean, a Democrat vying for the governor’s mansion, failed to unseat incumbent GOP governor Mike Johanns. Dean’s campaign had centered around bringing legalized gambling to Nebraska and education reform. Near-final vote counts gave a 69% lead to Johanns.
Dean had taken a leave of absence from his position as chief financial officer at infoUSA to make the gubernatorial run.
In the state’s second congressional district, Democrat Jim Simon lost to incumbent Republican Lee Terry, 63% to 33%. Simon is a member of the Simon family that founded Omaha Steaks, and established the company’s online marketing and sales strategy.
From Omaha Steaks, Simon joined AOL as vice president of new business development. While at AOL he launched Digital Marketing Services, a reward program and market research firm, in conjunction with the M/A/R/C Group.
