The first television ad from Republican gubernatorial candidate Brett Lindstrom emphasizes his “teamwork” as a Nebraska football player and says he would bring “a new generation of leadership” to the state. The ad launched last Friday.

Lindstrom, a state senator and Omaha financial adviser, faces an uphill battle to match the spending of the two most visible candidates in the race: Falls City businessman Charles W. Herbster and University of Nebraska Regent Jim Pillen. Both have had TV ads up for some time.

But Lindstrom does have a considerable advantage in youth. Lindstrom is 40, compared with 67-year-old Herbster and 66-year-old Pillen. A fourth candidate who is mounting a serious campaign, former State Sen. Theresa Thibodeau, is 46.

Lindstrom, a graduate of Millard West High School, walked on at the University of Nebraska–Lincoln and played in five games as a backup quarterback.

In the Nebraska Legislature, he is primarily known for winning the passage of a bill that will phase out state taxes on Social Security income.

He also voted in 2015 to repeal the death penalty. Nebraska voters, however, reinstated capital punishment at the polls in 2016 in an effort backed by Gov. Pete Ricketts and his family.

This story was originally published by Nebraska Examiner, an editorially independent newsroom providing a hard-hitting, daily flow of news. Find more at nebraskaexaminer.com.