One-party district

Dear Editor,

I wish to respond to the opinion expressed in your Sept. 9 piece entitled "Independent Faces Uphill Battle."

Your paper stated that "a vote for the independent candidate, Dan Hill of Grand Island, will actually benefit the candidate farthest from the voter's preference."

This statement implies that voting for Dan Hill could actually get the Democratic candidate elected. As a practical matter, this is virtually impossible. Rebekah Davis, the Democrat, will receive approximately 18 percent of the vote.

I encourage you to study 3rd District voting patterns and apply what you learn to this specific race.

As a practical matter, ours is a one-party district. Republican candidates for every type of office generally get around 70 percent or more of the 3rd District vote.

This was the case in the last election in which Adrian Smith received 77 percent of the vote. There are rare and specific exceptions, like Ben Nelson, but in each case the Democrat was viewed as a conservative first and foremost. The primary election totals also provide a good indicator of what to expect in the general election. The Democratic candidate received 18 percent of the total vote in the primary election and that is why I believe she will receive that amount in the general election. In an election cycle in which Democrats are extremely unpopular it is unrealistic to think she could somehow do much better. That leaves approximately 82 percent to be split between the conservatives.

Some people also point to the 2006 race in which Scott Kleeb, a Democrat, got 45 percent of the vote. Kleeb was a particularly strong candidate who, like Ben Nelson, ran as a conservative more than a Democrat.

His campaign was also very well-funded and it was the Republicans who were unpopular in that election cycle.

If Kleeb were the Democratic candidate in this race, he would do better than Davis who lacks credentials and has little funding, but I doubt even he would muster over 25 percent representing the party of Nancy Pelosi and President Obama.

No Democrat would have a chance in this race, even if the vote were split between four or five candidates.

Dan Hill

Independent Candidate for Nebraska's 3rd District

Grand Island