Watermeier, Yoakum Advance For Public Service Commission

NEBRASKA CITY – Republicans have nominated State Sen. Dan Watermeier for a seat on the state Public Service Commission. In Tuesday’s primary, he outpaced his Republican opponents with 59 percent of the vote. He finished with 15,907 compared to 6,470 for Ron Nolte and 4,548 for Scott Smathers. Democrats chose Christa Yoakum with 76 percent of the vote. She outpaced John Atkeison 18,314 votes to 5,587. Watermeier and Yoakum will appear on the ballot for the six-year term in November. The Public Service Commission is a five member board elected to six year terms. The board regulates telecommunications, natural gas, pipelines, railroad safety, grain warehouses and dealers. The board recently approved a route through Nebraska for the XL Keystone pipeline. Republican Tim Schram got 21,742 votes and Democrat Mike Forsythe got 1,259 votes for district 3.