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About The daily Nebraskan. ([Lincoln, Neb.) 1901-current | View Entire Issue (Oct. 29, 1974)
yiiaLjyyyyiii Lru U U ,rf nnn r My camDaian is all volunteer." she said of inCJOn r-jra? work fores. "The whole 2fur!..r i l U - U 1 lis I 5 s c a it 5 I it 4V ""X. !t1 fir JTel . She s in the real estate business and says she means business about bringing more efficiency to state government. . Catherine Dahlquist, Democratic candi date for secretary of state, says her more than 17 years of banking, finance and real estate management qualify her for the office. ''There's flreat room for improvement of efficiency of the secretary of state's office," she said. "There could be a great savings." But first, she said, she wants to familiarize voters with the office. Of all the people who went to the polls during Nebraska's last generaj election, more than 42,000 didn't vote for either secretary of state candidate. "The response that I most generally get from people across the state (while campaigning)," she said, "is 1 knew there was an office of secretary of state on the ballot, but I never voted for it, because I never met anv of the candidates.' " The office is neither known nor understood by a lot of voters, said Dahlquist. "Shortly after I filed for office I stopped a young man and asked him for his vote," she recalled. "He asked what office I was running for, so I told him secretary of state, and he said, 'I hadn't heard Kissinger was leaving.' " "The secretary of state's office doesn't deal with the daily lives of every Nebraskan, and so it's been used by politicians over the years on a name-recognition type of thing," she said. So, she said, she's trying to change that by getting out to meet 757,000 registered votes personally. By the first financial reporting deadline (Oct. 21), her campaign has cost $2Jl2.'By election time, shev estimates ffitf total ?$pehf-'will be, between $5,000 and $6,000. - To reach the voters, the Omaha native said she's been to every county fair except four, to the state fair and now is trying to attend every Democratic party dinner across the state. She said she also has used the news media to reach Nebraskans. her wnrk ir.r, thmunh' the Plomnnrailn ornmiw nrionitn tlons and the state Democratic Party." Besides the party structure, Dahlquist noted that there is a minimum of 200 persons persons outside the party who are lending a hand. She said this race has forced her to campaign as diligently as Gov. J. James Exon has had to campaign. She said her being a woman is a significant factor. "Quite often you hear that we need more women in government," she added. "I just happen to be the only woman on a state level who has a male opponent head-on in the election." "People may be realizing through our experience in business and working up. from the bottom," she continued, "that women do have this basic trrining of record keeping and efficiency and cairig more frugal." Such "basic training" fits in with her concept of the office. " "Basically, the secretary of state's office is a record-keeping office, Dahlquist said. "The office does not set policy, it's an administrative office." The record-filing part of the office, the State Records Management Board, was the target of a legislative bill passed by the 1974 Unicameral that would have eliminated it from the secretary of state's office. The bill was vetoed by Governor Exon, but Dahlquist was critical of those who supported it. "We go back to the same thing. The basic duties of the secretary of state is record keeping. The other functions are somewhat time-consuming, but not that demanding." The office hasn't had an audit since 1971 and is not fully computerized, said Dahlquist. Funds received by the office aren't being deposited with the state treasurer within 10 days of receipt as prescribed by state statute 81-118, she charged. : There has been no poll take, , according to Dahlquist, that would indicate if she or the incumbent is favored in the contest. So, with the activity in the heme stretch, how are her spirits? "I'm on my, third automobile," she said, "so consequently I wouid say the candidate is holding out better than the automobiles are in this campaign." IT fuy , By Lynn SIShasek Gov. J. James Exon is the gubernatorial candidate receiving the most support from UNL students, but State Sen. Ernest Chambers, independent candidate. Is only, three percentage points behind him In support, according to Dally Nebraskan Superpoll results. Results also show Democrat challenger Hess Dyas holding a 13 per cent lead over incumbent Rep. Charles Thone with 32 per i cent of students interviewed still undecided. Superpoll '74 was conducted by Community Response, Inc., a Lincoln opinion survey firm. The poll consisted of interviews with 406 students, who formed a proportional representation of students In various living units, colleges, age groups and class levels. . ' ' ( The question oh gubernatorial candidates that students were asked was: "If you were voting today, would you vote for the Democratic Governor Lieutenant Governor team of J. J. Exon-Gerald Whelan, or the Republican Governor Lieutenant Governor team of Richard Marvel-Anne Batchelder, or the single petition candidate of Ernest Chambers?" A total of 390 students answered the question. Exon-Whelan supporters num bered 30 per cent of the students, Marvel Batchelder supporters 17 per cent and Chambers supporters 27 per cent. o?rj? iGm;';nc cm 3 I I V fc. I V O O (continued) Harvey Carne, accountant for the state agencies audit, said the state auditor is required by law to perform 12 major audits a year. These cover the 12 largest of the 93 state agencies, including the University of Nebraska, the Department of Public Institutions and the Department of Corrections. These dozen agencies, according to Carne, have the largest budgets. The rest of the 93 state departments by law must be audited once every two years. This includes the secretary of state's office. But according to Carne, the state auditor's office is two years behind. Thus it will take until July 1975 before the state begins to audit the secretary of state's books, Carne said. Legislature decides According io Lt, Gov. Frank Marsh, who .was secretary of state for 18 years, any recommendation for a yearly audit of the office must be directed to the legislature, since that body would have to allocate the money. Beermann said his campaign speeches are aimed at explaining the office to the voters. He said his campaign has taken him to nearly every county. "This year it looks like I'm going to make about 85 counties out of the 93," he said. He .visits county fairs, banquets, voter information meetings, Lions Clubs and other service clubs, he added. Beermann said his campaign staff consists of himself, he wife and two other helpers, and he plans to have spent $4,500 campaigning by Nov. 5. Beermann has been connected with the secretary of state's office for a decade. He was legal counsel and administrative assistant to the office for two years, In 1967 he became deputy secretary of state. Finally, in 1971, Beermann assumed the office for a four-year term. iJ If w y fiu iaa4 ttit ITOE1. u u L Liiii.ii.I mmMr f) u- tLntHMSft aJ Li And for All Other Officer in All Election! on the Same Tire us Men in WyoninjJ, foloradfc Ufch ail Ml Mil IIIIINMMMMIMIMM ..I., sry n n iuj m - I J I f ! I 'A I ' i 11 ii m mi m i I . I Twenty-seven per cent of the students who responded said they were undecided on which candidate to support. The greatest support for the Exon-Whelan team was among the 22-year-old students who responded to the survev. Fortv-f!v iw cent of these students supported the Democratic ticket. The Marvel-Batcheider ) ; team received the. most support from the 19-year-olds (25 per cent) than from any other age group that responded to the poll. Chambers' greatest support. was with students in the 23-30 age bracket. Of the freshmen who responded to tha survey, the greatest percentage of them (38 per cent) were undecided on the candidates, according to poll results. In the sophomore class, the largest percentage also were unaeciaea (dd per cent). The greatest percentages of the junior and senior classes SUDDorted the Exon-Whelan team m .nor cent In the junior class, 34 per cent In the senior class). ..wii uunvu tll UUCdllUII. II fUU WtSIO" . voting today for the First District , Conyressuian, would , you veto for 'Charles- ; Thone, the Republican, or Hesaf43ye, th$ Democrat?", 391 students responded -ifrthe' luiiowmg manner; ihone supporters totaled 28 per cent of the oiuuems, uyas supporters total fed 4T perT cent and 32 per cent of the students were undecided. iviosi ui i nune s support came from the 19-year-old students who responded to the survey (33 per cent). Dyas received the most support from the 23-30-year-old students who responded to the survey (49 percent). Thirty-six per cent of the freshmen who responded to the poll supported Thone, his largest group of supporters In the class levels. Dyas received support from 49 per cent of the seniors who responded to the survey, his largest group of supporters In the class levels. daily nebraskan election special ' -1 page 9 1 V k r .
