David Eugene Heineman (born May 12, 1948) is an American politician who served as the 39th governor of Nebraska from 2005 to 2015.

He was elected to his first full term as Nebraska Lieutenant Governor in 2002 as Johanns's running mate.

Heineman became governor on January 20, 2005, following Mike Johanns's resignation to become United States Secretary of Agriculture in President George W. Bush's Cabinet.

[4] The Lincoln Journal Star's analysis of the 2006 gubernatorial race attributed Heineman's win to his opposition to Class I rural school reorganization and the granting of resident college tuition rates to the children of undocumented immigrants, helping him win over rural voters.

His website describes him as a "leader for Nebraska’s agricultural industry", stating that he secured trade deals for the export of wheat, soybeans and other commodities.

[9] In January 2013, he approved a revised route for the Keystone Pipeline, that would avoid the environmentally sensitive Sandhills region, but cut through the High Plains Aquifer.

"[12] In October 2014, federal judge Kimberly Mueller dismissed the lawsuit, rejecting the states' challenge to Proposition 2, California's prohibition on the sale of eggs laid by caged hens kept in conditions more restrictive than those approved by California voters in a 2008 ballot initiative.

[17] In April 2014, Heineman signed a bill striking the word "firearms" from the list of those items a governor may suspend during a state of emergency.