BEATRICE – It may be an uphill battle in a state with a Republican majority of voter registrations, but Democrat Carol Blood feels Nebraskans want change. The candidate for Governor stopped in Beatrice Sunday, at a Gage County Democratic Party Fundraiser held at the Holiday Inn Express.


"We're not spewing rhetoric, we're not talking party speaking points. We're saying alright, we have these opportunities do do better...this is how we're going to fix it."


The former Bellevue City Council member and current State Senator who is in the middle of a legislative term is facing Republican Jim Pillen of Columbus, in the November election.


"When you understand the different levels of government and how they work and how state statutes address their needs...it really does make you a better policy maker. It also makes you very pragmatic. You understand that certain things can, and can't be done. Taxes, is a really good example. Everybody talks about cut, cut, cutting and we're going to lower your taxes. But, if you really understand government, you'd understand that you have to have a plan. You have to have a budget that is going to mirror that plan. Just randomly cutting ends up with things like prison overcrowding for twenty years. That's what's happened in Nebraska...property taxes that never go down, because they're playing a shell game with your taxes."


This summer, the U.S. Supreme Court overturned the landmark Roe v. Wade decision which made abortion constitutionally protected. Though that decision may more greatly affect U.S. House and Senate races, Blood says the decision had the effect of changing who, and how many will also vote in the Governor’s race.
"We have definitely seen a lot of women who have registered this year that have not previously voted. We're seeing that in statistics that have come to us. We've also seen women in their 60s, 70s say that the last effort when it came to abortion in Nebraska had just gone too far. They don't want doctors to be interrupted when they're dealing with their patients, by politicians."


Blood says states that have passed trigger laws to greatly restrict or ban abortion have threatened women’s health and caused states to lose doctors…who go to other states where they are allowed to do their jobs.


As the November General Election approaches, there is distrust among many voters about the voting process across the country, fueled largely by unfounded claims of fraud in voting. "I just think there's a lot of distrust in government, in general and part of that is how people get their information. And I understand when people don't trust politicians, don't trust government, don't trust the process. I think it's actually good that people are getting involved. But if you're going to get involved, make sure the information that you're using, is valid information."


As the Democrat heads into the final weeks of the campaign, Blood says she is visiting all areas of Nebraska adopting a strategic planning process…getting input from citizens about what they need in their state government.


"I think when you're a farmer who drives the economy and you have to get from point A to point B...and you're broadband has to be updated and it's got to work. We're not seeing that to the magnitude we should have seen when you look at the amount of money we invested in it. A lot of the candidates talk about law enforcement, but they don't talk about how the state literally defunded law enforcement training center until the ARPA funds came through this year. I think there is a clear difference between my opponent and I...I understand the concerns that are going on in Nebraska. I have a clear plan on how to fix them. We're going to do strategic planning. We're going to travel all over the state of Nebraska...Beatrice, North Platte, Scottsbluff, McCook, Grand Island, Hastings. We're going to say what do you need, and what can we do to make things better?"


Blood says that process helps establish priorities for working with government and non-profit organizations and allows a budget to mirror that plan. Blood said the race for Governor is not about party, but about people and policy.