Where I Stand — Mike O’Callaghan: Candidates, winners and losers, make our system run

Friday, Sept. 4, 1998 | 12:07 p.m.

THE PRIMARY ELECTION WINNERS have been receiving congratulations as they gear up for the final run. They deserve a pat on the back because campaigning in the hot summer sun of Las Vegas isn't an easy task. But what about the losers? Some of them we heard about for the first time and may never again see their name on a ballot. Others just got their first taste of campaigning and will be back to try again.

Allow me to present my view of a few of the men and women who ran but didn't win. They also entered the public arena and faced the sun's heat and the fire of opponents.

Sen. Joe Neal, D-North Las Vegas -- After 26 years of service in the Legislature, Joe took his shot at the top spot in the state. Without money, he did the best he could to bring his campaign to the voters. Because of his many years of public service he supplied the voters with different ideas and challenged the establishment. He will continue to serve in the 1999 Legislature.

Lt. Gov. Lonnie Hammargren -- His voice was drowned out by the shouting of Aaron Russo. Both of them were doomed to be defeated by the smoothly run campaign of fellow Republican Kenny Guinn. Lonnie has worked hard in his present office and, like Joe Neal, wanted to step up a notch. This talented physician has wasted valuable time in the field of politics. I'll never forget the time he volunteered to take his skills to Honduras to heal wounded Nicaraguan Contras. He paid his own way, risked his life and helped heal the wounded.

Joe Ullom -- Campaigning to become county treasurer, Joe put his name on the ballot. I've known him since he was in Basic High School and trained at the Henderson Boys Club. He campaigned hard, ran third in a field of five and will probably be back again.

Dennis Hetherington -- Many people were surprised when this well-known businessman put his name on the ballot to seek the county clerk's office. He stayed in the campaign right up until the end and refused to quit. Even when losing he won more than 10,000 votes while running fourth.

Louise G. Banks -- This lady took on a powerful incumbent and a former legislator in an attempt to serve in the Assembly. She worked hard and came in second while making the two favored men sweat. There has to be a place for her in government.

Chuck Gardner -- Long a voice willing to publicly state stands on issues, he ran a close second when seeking an Assembly seat. Losing won't silence him and he will probably appear on some future ballot.

Ed Gobel -- It's difficult to campaign from a wheelchair, but this vocal veteran took up the challenge when seeking a seat on the University Board of Regents. Despite the difficulties, he ran third in a field of four. Little money but lots of guts helped him win almost 6,000 votes.

Mary Mosley -- An experienced and talented public servant seeking the office of County Clerk but losing to Shirley Parraguirre, who has the same attributes. Six other candidates were scattered behind these two women. Watch for Mosley to land on her feet and serve in a high-level public or private job.

There are at least a couple dozen other losing candidates who provided competition and brought their supporters to the polls. There's no doubt that all of the candidates deserved a bigger voter turnout than we gave them. My family was impressed with the quality of candidates who came to our door to seek votes. When all is said and done, these are the people who help make our quality of life the best in the world. Without these citizens willing to take abuse and open up their lives to almost unbearable scrutiny our nation wouldn't succeed.

Voters act as jurors when they enter the polling booth to cast ballots. Overall, like jurors, they make wise selections and this week it was obvious they purposefully ignored the advice of some political "experts" and media critics and voted for candidates who have been the subject of public trashing for the past several months.

As President Abraham Lincoln is credited with saying, "You can fool some of the people all of the time, and all of the people some of the time, but you cannot fool all of the people all the time."