Chris Beutler

Chris Beutler (born November 14, 1944) was a Nebraska state senator between the years of 1978-1986 and 1990-2006 in the Nebraska Legislature and is the 51st and current mayor of Lincoln, Nebraska.

He was born on November 14, 1944, in Omaha, Nebraska. He graduated from Omaha Benson High School in 1962, Yale University in 1966, and University of Nebraska–Lincoln College of Law in 1973. He was a U.S. Peace Corps teacher in Turkey 1966 to 1967 and 1st lieutenant in the U.S. Army from 1969 to 1971. He is married to Judy Beutler and they have five children, daughters Lori, Alexa, Erica, Mikahla, and son Sam, as well as seven grandchildren.

He was elected in 1978 to represent Central Lincoln's 28th Nebraska legislative district and reelected in 1982. He resigned in 1986 and was reelected in 1990, 1994, 1998, and 2002. In his last term he sat on the Appropriations, Executive Board, and Reference committees and was the chairperson of the Legislative Performance Audit committee. Because of term limits, Chris Beutler was not eligible for another consecutive legislative term.

Chris Beutler announced his candidacy for mayor of Lincoln, Nebraska on September 15, 2006, after the incumbent mayor Coleen Seng, a fellow Democrat, chose not to seek re-election. He focused on a campaign theme of establishing Lincoln as a great city by promoting safety and security, an exceptional economy, and a unique sense of place.

His opponents in the primary held on Tuesday, April 3, 2007 were Nebraska Party candidate Mike Deal, Republican city councilman Ken Svoboda and Independent Roger Yant. The results after 191 precincts reporting, former state senator Beutler walked away with 48 percent of the votes, compared to Republican City Councilman Ken Svoboda’s 35 percent. They were trailed by independent candidate Roger Yant with 14 percent, and Nebraska Party candidate Mike Deal at 3 percent. In the general election on May 1, Beutler defeated Svoboda by 845 votes, 51%-49%.