Hawaii gubernatorial election, 2018 (August 11 Democratic primary)

	2022 → ← 2014
Governor of Hawaii
	Democratic primary; Republican primary; General election;
Election details
	Filing deadline: June 5, 2018
	Primary: August 11, 2018; General: November 6, 2018; Pre-election incumbent(s):; Gov. David Ige (Democrat)
How to vote
	Poll times: 7 a.m. to 6 p.m.; Voting in Hawaii
Race ratings
	Cook Political Report: Solid Democratic; Sabato's Crystal Ball: Safe Democratic; Inside Elections: Solid Democratic
Ballotpedia analysis
	Federal and state primary competitiveness; State executive elections in 2018; Impact of term limits in 2018; State government trifectas; State government triplexes; Ballotpedia's Election Analysis Hub, 2018
Hawaii; executive elections
	Governor; Lieutenant governor; Office of Hawaiian Affairs board of trustees

Incumbent David Ige (D) won the August 11 Democratic primary, receiving 51.4 percent of the vote to Rep. Colleen Hanabusa's (D) 44.4 percent.

Three separate outlets rated the general election for governor of Hawaii as safely Democratic. But before Gov. David Ige (D) could make it to the general election, he faced Rep. Colleen Hanabusa (D) and four other candidates in the Democratic primary.

Hanabusa, whose campaign materials touted her past governing experience, ran as a change candidate, according to political science professor Colin Moore.^[1] Her backers included the Hawaii Government Employees Association, the state's largest union, as well as Rep. Tulsi Gabbard (D) and Ige's former lieutenant governor Shan Tsutsui (D).

Ige pointed to his accomplishments since taking office, including an initiative to expand access to air conditioning in public schools.^[2] Ige's campaign website boasted of low unemployment rates, reduced homelessness, improved education, and a fiscally sound government under his tenure.^[3] Among his backers were the Hawaii State Teachers Association.

Ernest Caravalho, Wendell Ka'ehu'ae'a, Richard Kim, and Van Tanabe were also on the primary ballot.

Since the state's admission to the union in 1959, Ige's 2014 defeat of Gov. Neil Abercrombie (D) was the only time a sitting governor was defeated in a primary election.^[4] The only time a sitting governor of Hawaii was defeated in a general election was in 1962, when former Del. John Burns (D) defeated sitting Gov. William Quinn (R). In governor elections between 1948 and 2013, 35 governors seeking re-election were unseated in primary challenges, according to data collected by Rutgers University.^[5]^[6]

For more information about gubernatorial elections in 2018, click here.

SETTING THE STAGE
Heading into the election, the sitting governor was David Ige (D), who was elected in 2014.
In 2018, Hawaii was a Democratic trifecta. It had held this status since former Gov. Neil Abercrombie (D) took office in 2010. Hawaii was a Democratic triplex.
Hawaii was won by the Democratic candidate in each of the five presidential elections between 2000 and 2016. The widest margin of victory was Barack Obama's 45 percent margin in 2008 while the narrowest was John Kerry's nine percent margin in 2004.

Hawaii was one of 36 states that held an election for governor in 2018. Democrats gained seven previously Republican-held seats, and Republicans gained one previously independent-held seat. Heading into the 2018 elections, there were 16 Democratic governors, 33 Republican governors, and one independent governor. In 2018, 26 of the 33 states with a Republican governor held a gubernatorial election, while nine out of the 16 states with a Democratic governor held a gubernatorial election. Seventeen of the 36 seats up for election were open seats (four Democratic, 12 Republican, and one independent), meaning that the sitting governor was not seeking re-election. Click here for more information on other 2018 gubernatorial elections.

Candidates and election results

See also: Statistics on gubernatorial candidates, 2018

The following candidates ran in the Democratic primary for Governor of Hawaii on August 11, 2018.

Democratic primary for Governor of Hawaii

	Candidate	%	Votes
✔	David Ige	51.4	124,572
	Colleen Hanabusa	44.4	107,631
	Ernest Caravalho	2.3	5,662
	Wendell Ka'ehu'ae'a	0.9	2,298
	Richard Kim	0.6	1,576
	Van Tanabe	0.3	775

	Incumbents are bolded and underlined. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 242,514
= candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey.
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Withdrawn or disqualified candidates

Clayton Hee (D)

Endorsements

The table below summarizes the endorsements Ballotpedia identified for Democratic candidates in the Hawaii gubernatorial primary.

Democratic candidate endorsements
Endorsement	Hanabusa	Ige
Elected officials
Former Gov. Ben Cayetano (D)^[7]	✔
Hawaii County Mayor Harry Kim (D)^[7]		✔
Rep. Tulsi Gabbard (D-HI)^[8]	✔
Former Lt. Gov. Shan Tsutsui (D)^[9]	✔
State Sen. Ronald Kouchi (D)^[10]	✔
State Rep. Scott Saiki (D)^[10]	✔
State Sen. Donovan Dela Cruz (D)^[10]	✔
State Rep. Sylvia Luke (D)^[10]	✔
Organizations
Hawaii Lodging & Tourism Association^[11]		✔
Hawaii State Teachers Association^[12]		✔
Unite Here Local 5^[13]		✔
Hawaii Carpenters Union^[14]	✔
State of Hawaii Organization of Police Officers^[15]	✔
Hawaii Government Employees Association^[16]	✔

Polls

See also: Ballotpedia's approach to covering polls

Hawaii governor 2018, Democratic primary
Poll	Poll sponsor	David Ige (D)	Colleen Hanabusa (D)	Clayton Hee (D)	Undecided/Other	Margin of error	Sample size

Merriman River Group (July 19-21, 2018)	Civil Beat	43%	34%	0%	23%	+/-3.3	871
Mason-Dixon Polling & Strategy (July 6-11, 2018)	Honolulu Star-Advertiser	44%	40%	0%	16%	+/-4.5	494
Merriman River Group (May 3-5, 2018)	Honolulu Civil Beat	31%	37%	11%	21%	+/-3.7	707
Mason-Dixon Polling & Strategy (March 13-18, 2018)	Honolulu Star-Advertiser	27%	47%	11%	15%	+/-4.5	498
AVERAGES		36.25%	39.5%	5.5%	18.75%	+/-4	642.5
Note: The polls above may not reflect all polls that have been conducted in this race. Those displayed are a random sampling chosen by Ballotpedia staff. If you would like to nominate another poll for inclusion in the table, send an email to [email protected].

Campaign tactics and strategies

Campaign advertisements

Colleen Hanabusa

Support

"Defend Hawaii Now" - campaign ad, released July 31, 2018

"Sushi" - Hanabusa campaign ad, released July 18, 2018

"Priorities" - Hanabusa campaign ad, released July 18, 2018

"Understands" - Hanabusa campaign ad, released June 22, 2018

David Ige

Support

Oppose

Be Change Now released an ad highlighting the false missile alert in Hawaii in January 2018 that lasted for 38 minutes. Ige said at the time that he had forgotten his Twitter password.

Online presence

May 14, 2018

The following social media statistics were collected on May 14, 2018.

	Facebook			Twitter
Candidate	Followers	Likes	Comments on Last Ten Posts	Followers	Following	Tweets
Ige	8,972	9,140	19	1,623	652	2,101
Hanabusa	5,774	4,945	14	5,108	3,666	2,742
Hee	2,065	2,045	52	--	--	--
Caravalho	144	140	0	--	--	--

Tweets by David Ige Tweets by Colleen Hanabusa

Campaign finance

The following campaign finance figures are based on midyear campaign finance reports which covered all contributions and expenditures made between the beginning of the election cycle on January 1, 2017, and June 30, 2018.^[17]

The Ige campaign entered the campaign cycle with $398,080.89 in its account from previous cycles.
The Caravalho campaign entered the campaign cycle with $200 in its campaign account.
The Kim campaign entered the campaign cycle $11,127.92 in debt.
As of July 18, 2018, the Tanabe campaign had not yet filed any campaign finance reports for the 2018 election cycle.

Satellite spending

Be Change Now

Be Change Now was a super PAC describing its mission as to promote "innovative, bold and forward-thinking solutions so that all the people of Hawaii can succeed together."^[18] The organization spent at least $665,000 on the gubernatorial primary, supporting Colleen Hanabusa (D) and opposing David Ige (D).^[19]

Defend Hawaii Now

Defend Hawaii Now was a PAC registered shortly before the primary which spent $50,000 in support of Colleen Hanabusa (D). Because the PAC was established shortly before the election, it was not required to disclose its supporters until after the election, although a disclaimer in a television ad it ran stated that the PAC's primary source of funding was Waimea Associates, LLC.^[20]

AiKea UNITE HERE

AiKea UNITE HERE was a political group established in 2012 that was affiliated with UNITE HERE Local 5. Its mission is "making a vision for a brighter future possible by engaging ordinary people in taking collective action and building a larger movement."^[21] The group spent at least $200,000 in support of David Ige (D).^[22]

Race ratings

See also: Race rating definitions and methods

Race ratings: Hawaii gubernatorial election, 2018
Race tracker	Race ratings
	November 5, 2018	October 30, 2018	October 23, 2018	October 16, 2018
The Cook Political Report	Solid Democratic	Solid Democratic	Solid Democratic	Solid Democratic
Inside Elections with Nathan L. Gonzales	Solid Democratic	Solid Democratic	Solid Democratic	Solid Democratic
Larry J. Sabato's Crystal Ball	Safe Democratic	Safe Democratic	Safe Democratic	Safe Democratic
Note: Ballotpedia updates external race ratings every two weeks throughout the election season.

Election history

2014

See also: Hawaii gubernatorial and lieutenant gubernatorial election, 2014

Neil Abercrombie ran for re-election as governor of Hawaii in the 2014 election. In the Democratic primary, David Ige defeated Abercrombie and Van Tanabe by a 35.9 percent margin.^[23]

Governor of Hawaii, Democratic Primary, 2014
Candidate	Vote %	Votes
David Ige	67.4%	157,050
Neil Abercrombie Incumbent	31.5%	73,507
Van Tanabe	1.1%	2,622
Total Votes		233,179
Election results via Hawaii Division of Elections.

Campaign themes and policy stances

Campaign themes

David Ige

“

Housing
Governor Ige has created thousands of affordable homes, including rentals to address the needs of those entering the workforce. Committed to renovating the state’s housing facilities and on-track to build 10,000 units by 2020. Approximately 5,300 units have been built since Governor Ige took office, with 40% of those being affordable. Another 5,900 units are under construction or in the planning stages. Engaged in a public-private partnership with Duane Kurisu, aio Foundation and the City & County of Honolulu to develop Kahauiki Village, developing long-term and permanent affordable housing for homeless families. Working with a community vision team, has completed the Kalihi 21st Century Transformation Initiative, fulfilling a promise to “revitalize Kalihi.” Allocated rental assistance funds for tenants at Na Lei Hulu Kupuna Senior Residence in Kaka‘ako and ensuring the project will remain affordable for the next 60 years. Governor Ige and the State Legislature have added $150 million to the state’s affordable housing accounts managed by Hawai‘i Housing Finance and Development Corporation to produce affordable workforce housing. Has identified state lands near rail transit stations for future housing, employment centers, daycare, senior centers, and community facilities that will provide a sense of community and ease of accessibility. Helped institute a ‘Housing First’ policy to focus on moving homeless into transitional and permanent housing. Completed the Family Assessment Center in Kaka‘ako, with the goal to move homeless families into permanent, stable housing in 90 days. Hosted ‘Landlord Summits’ to encourage and increase the number of rentals to families who are transitioning out of homelessness.

Economy
Governor Ige has kept his promise by promoting economic diversification and policies that support growth. Has maintained Hawai‘i’s global position as a leader in the tourism arena, providing jobs and a stable and growing economy. Reduced future costs of state pension and health care benefits by making annual required contributions at the beginning of the fiscal year, and allowing investment of these payments for a higher return to the trust fund. Achieved a AA+ bond rating creating lower interest rates on state loans for important projects such as construction of new public schools and renovation of aging public facilities. Started construction on an airport modernization plan that includes improvements to the Maui, Molokai, and the new $1.1 billion Diamond Head Concourse at the Daniel K. Inouye International Airport for passenger, airline and business expansion. Upgrading Honolulu Harbor with the construction of Kapalama Container Terminal, one of the most significant infrastructure projects invested by the state, ensuring efficient delivery of goods to residents on every island and providing stable waterfront and related employment opportunities. Responsible fiscal practices resulted in Moodyʻs Analytics naming Hawai‘i as one of only 16 states nationwide with enough cash reserves to weather the ʻstress testʻ of another economic recession. Started construction on the Consolidated Rent-A-Car facility at Kahului Airport – the largest public works project in Mauiʻs history. Helps new start-ups to develop innovation and initiatives that advances opportunities in research, technology and creative media to assist Hawai‘i’s goal of sustaining our economy and create better-paying jobs to encourage our younger generation and residents to remain in Hawai‘i. Welcomed more air carriers to Hawai‘i including Jin Air, Scoot Airlines, and Southwest Airlines. Expanded routes from the U.S. mainland and Asia. Installed 32 automated passport control kiosks at Daniel K. Inouye International Airport to provide a more efficient and pleasant international arrival experience. Working to expand the U.S. Customs Pre-clearance Program to Narita International Airport (Japan) and Incheon International Airport (Korea). Strongly supported the Hawaiian Telcom public-private partnership that laid transpacific undersea cable, giving a significant boost to internet speeds throughout the islands. Supports the U.S. Military, crucial pillars of Hawai‘i’s economy, who provides more than 100,000 jobs and contributes over $12 billion to our economy. Created the entrepreneurial Sandbox in Kaka‘ako, bringing start-ups together in a shared high-tech-think-tank environment. Supports the Thirty Meter Telescope project for science advancement and future job creation while respecting concerns from Native Hawaiians. Delivered free WI-FI at the Daniel K. Inouye International Airport, allowing visitors to access the internet and enhancing passenger service.

Education
Investing in Hawai‘i's most important resource, its people, to build a thriving innovation economy. Improved schools by changing the top-down, "one size fits all," decision-making culture at the Department of Education. Empowered schools, faculty, and staff to integrate improved curriculum to enhance student engagement, and provide complete and meaningful direction for career options and future leadership. Expanded the Early College program, so all Hawai‘i public high school students can take courses to earn dual-credits (high school and college credits). Fought to increase teachers’ pay and negotiate a contract they deserve. Exceeded his promise to cool 1,000 classrooms, expected to exceed 1,300 classrooms statewide. Worked alongside more than 3,000 educators and community members statewide to complete the new Blueprint for Education, improving the quality of instruction and retaining more qualified teachers. Expanding campuses and offering a wider curriculum at UH West O‘ahu and Pālamanui in Kona, Hawaii. Is the first Hawai‘i Governor to create “Hawai‘i’s Promise” with the University of Hawai‘i Community Colleges, which eliminates the cost of college as a barrier to higher education. Hawai‘i's Promise provides financial assistance for low-income community college students to pay for tuition, books, supplies and transportation costs. Called out Education Secretary Betsy DeVos to keep sexual assault protections on college campuses in place after she threatened rollbacks to these policies. Works to ensure all students can learn within a healthy and safe environment. Supported the development of the new STEM Education Building at Waimea Middle School, offering a new educational approach that uses Science, Technology, Engineering, the Arts and Mathematics. Recognized for bringing the CyberStart pilot program to students for job training while preparing for cyber security statewide advancement.

Historic Firsts
Governor Ige has accomplished many historic firsts that have moved Hawai‘i forward. Advanced a state policy that by the year 2045, 100% of the electricity generated in Hawai‘i should come from renewable energy resources. Approved a state law that enabled Hawai‘i to join the rest of the world and agree to abide by the Paris Climate Agreement. Received a AA+ bond rating for the state which means lower interest rates and more tax dollars to fund projects. Approved state funding for Kupuna Care, aiding full-time family caregivers who also have full-time jobs to tap into community resources. AARP Hawai‘i called it a “major win.” Sponsored environmental scientists and conservation advocates at the World Conservation Congress - International Union for Conservation of Nature. Protect Hawai‘i residents from gun violence by requiring more rigorous FBI gun owner background checks to keep guns out of the hands of stalkers, harassers and the serious mentally ill. Advocated raising the smoking age to 21 to deter children and young adults from a deadly habit.

Accountable Government
Restored the public’s faith and trust by ending the Pay to Play and the power of special interest groups with lucrative contracts which favored only a chosen few. Ordered a complete investigation of Hawaii Emergency Management Agencyʻs policies and practices; released an All Hazards Preparedness Improvement Action Plan recommending immediate and strategic improvements to address all major natural and man-made hazards efficiently and effectively. Has led our state with efficient and transparent government procedures, accountability, and common sense. Has reduced waste and fraud and allows more Hawai‘i businesses an opportunity to compete for work. Saved the state more than $268 million by demanding more oversight of government contracts and going after tax cheats. Tackling long-overdue tax, payroll, workers compensation and other paper-related projects through a modernization plan.

Environment
Governor Ige has kept his promise to protect and conserve our environment. Established the Sustainable Hawai‘i Intiative which sets concrete and measurable goals through sound resource management. Fostered cultural and environmental stewardship from the mountains to the sea and has successfully protected nearly 40,000 acres of watershed forests on Kaua’i, O’ahu, Moloka’i and Hawai’i islands. Developed plans to effectively manage 30% of nearshore ocean waters and watershed protection to sustain our way of life by 2030. Oversaw the final negotiation to purchase a conservation easement to protect and preserve Turtle Bay Mauka from future development and secured public access. Protected and more efficiently used our fresh water supply through conservation and reuse for agriculture, urban and coastal areas. Sponsored the 2016 IUCN World Conservation Congress bringing thousands of environmental leaders and decision-makers, government, indigenous peoples, business, and academia together to advance the goals of conserving the environment, developing solutions and addressing global challenges. Improving state parks for public use and enjoyment. Is developing a stronger interagency biosecurity policy and infrastructure plan to protect Hawai‘i against invasive species by 2027.

Energy
Governor Ige’s vision and energy policies will reduce our energy costs, transform our economy, and lead the nation and the world. Advanced as a state policy that by the year 2045, 100% of the electricity generated in Hawai‘i should come from renewable energy resources. Approved a state law that enables Hawai‘i to join the rest of the world and abide by the Paris Climate Agreement. Reached a preliminary agreement with Honolulu Seawater Air Conditioning to cool seven state office buildings and the state Capitol, which could save taxpayers more than $14 million a year. Opposes importing liquefied natural gas (LNG) as another fossil fuel source to generate electricity that would involve huge infrastructure investments and distract from the long-term focus and efforts on renewable energy.

Native Hawaiians
Governor Ige honors, respects, and promotes Native Hawaiian culture and sustainability. Respects and supports the Native Hawaiian community’s ongoing efforts for self-determination. Provided the highest level of funding to the Department of Hawaiian Home Lands in the state’s history -- $24 million - more than double the amount of any previous Governor. Ensured that additional CIP funds can be committed to support housing and infrastructure development for the Department of Hawaiian Home Lands’ beneficiaries. Fought for Native Hawaiians and OHA’s co-trustee position to help manage the Papahānaumokuākea Marine National Monument.

Health
Governor Ige is committed to a 21st century health system that improves access, treatment, and affordability for all Hawai‘i residents. Dedicated funding and increased focus on mental health treatment so those affected, including the homeless population can achieve optimum recovery and functioning in the community. Approved state funding for Kupuna Care, aiding full-time family caregivers who also have full-time jobs to tap into community resources. AARP Hawaii called it a “major win.” Is the first in the country to raise the smoking age to 21, deterring children and young adults from a deadly habit. Secured federal funding and created a statewide initiative to involve state health, public safety and consumer protection agencies to fight opioid abuse. Implemented Hawai‘i’s first medical marijuana dispensaries statewide for qualified persons with health conditions.

Transportation
Governor Ige has deployed traffic mitigation efforts to reduce congestion on our roadways. Continues to repair our state’s infrastructure for an optimal passenger and commercial transportation system that will benefit Hawai‘i now and for our future. Partnered with the USDOT Central Federal Lands Highways Division to deliver ten bridges and other highway projects throughout the islands. Engaged with Hawaii State Historic Bridge Inventory & Evaluation to assess all 708 state and county bridges statewide for preservation values and guidance for DOT’s future project development. Supports and works with Mayor Kirk Caldwell and city leaders for the development of a multi-model and inter-model transportation network, including bus and a rail transit system. Deployed traffic mitigation initiatives to reduce congestion and is overseeing alternatives on major artery roadways.

Agriculture
Governor Ige is working to double local food production by 2020 to transform our economy and create a more sustainable Hawai‘i. Worked with U.S. Department of Agriculture to provide loans for farmers and land for agricultural expansion. Developed water and renewable energy resources to support agricultural efforts. Established a tax credit to assist and support organic farmers. Provided $1.264 million to fund the Rapid Ohia Death fight, and sustain the Ohia tree forests that are the jewel of the Big Island. Has doubled the stateʻs land inventory by acquiring more than 2,500 acres of former pineapple and sugar plantation lands for agriculture production.

National Leader
Governor Ige fights against the unjust policies of President Trump which threaten our shared values and priorities. Initiated an early challenge to President Trump’s travel ban and stood with our Congressional delegation against discrimination policies. Hawai‘i was the first to the courthouse to stop PresidentTrump’s efforts, taking the case to the U.S. Supreme Court. Objected to President Trump’s discriminatory policy targeting transgender troops. Governor Ige is supported by Rep. Tammy Duckworth, a decorated veteran born and raised in Hawai‘i. Eighteen other states followed suit. Joined a coalition of 16 states to file a lawsuit to protect Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) grantees, many of whom were educated in U.S. schools and are employed by U.S. companies. Joined 17 states in suing Education Secretary Betsy DeVos for rescinding the “Borrower Rule” aimed at protecting students from predatory sexual assaults. Approved a state law that enabled Hawai‘i to join the rest of the world and abide by the Paris Climate Agreement. Called attention to the continued need for Title IX programs in our public schools and college campuses, in honor of the late Rep. Patsy Mink who was the original champion of Title IX. Stands with our congressional delegation against the repeal of the Affordable Care Act. Stands against proposed tax reforms that will hurt the poor and our shrinking middle class.^[24]

”

—David Ige for Governor^[25]

Clayton Hee

“

Our Future
Young people cannot afford to buy homes and families are ending up on the streets. We need a true living wage and an honest conversation about affordable housing.

Our Legacy
Hawaii is a state that is aging. We need an infrastructure to support our kupuna and their caretakers.

Our Home
Sea level rise is already washing away our roads. We need to do something about climate change today, not tomorrow.

Our Health
We are in a healthcare crisis. The house is on fire and we are doing nothing. It is time to explore every option to identify the right solutions.

Our Prosperity
The cost of Rail is sucking up our entire budget, taking away from education, infrastructure and our social safety net while the rich get richer. The cost of rail has become an illness that has spread to every island, we need effective leadership that will ensure that this illness does not continue to spread.

Enough is Enough
Hawaiʻi needs champion and a fighter for the people. Hawaiʻi needs a leader like Clayton Hee.^[24]

”

—Friends of Clayton Hee^[26]

Ernest Caravalho

“

Education
This particular issue has been addressed to various degrees of success here in Hawai'i. A lot of progress has been made but it has been a long time in the coming, and for many, not soon enough. And if we are to be honest, this is the most important of all issues in our islands and of our time.

We do not see education as something that we should sacrifice in favor of something else or even as something that we can negotiate so as to give all keiki less than they deserve.

Nothing less than our future and our humanity is at stake when we talk about education. Therefore, we take a strong progressive stance on what our educational system needs to be here in Hawai'i. Conservative and gradual approaches are not going to cut it.

The foundation for our future...

It's time to invest. The simple truth is that any state will only be as successful as their investment in education. For some reason, here in Hawai'i, we are always invoking the children. Keiki this, keiki that. Then, when it comes to actually doing something to take care of children the way we need to, we settle for less than our children deserve. There have been some big efforts to restructure and improve Hawai'i's education system and that progress can not be overlooked. But we keep settling when we should be striving for higher.

It goes without saying that the very first step we need to take here in Hawai'i is to increase funding. The main way that is being used to help fund public schools is by relying on federal dollars. If Hawai'i is to be as self reliant as possible, we need to be able to fund our education system completely on our own. So the goal should be to wean ourselves from federal funds.

Aside from re-prioritizing some state funds, the easiest way to achieve this is by cultivating our own marijuana and hemp industry. By fully legalizing recreational marijuana, regulating it and taxing it appropriately, similar to the way we do alcohol, we can drastically increase school funding. Additionally, starting our own Hemp industry for use in a plethora of other applications, would go even farther in empowering Hawai'i to properly educate and feed our keiki.

In the short term, that new revenue will allow for an Increase in teacher pay and benefits in order to retain our most valuable educators and serve to lower the number of teachers that leave Hawai'i due to costs of living. The increase in funding will also allow for a gradual increase in the number of teachers through local training and recruitment. It will facilitate food programs and school farms so that schools may have organic fresh produce to feed their students at no cost to any student.

The long term goal is to decrease class sizes so that there is always a teacher and an assistant teacher per 12 students. With the end goal of 6 students to 1 teacher. Meanwhile, we will lay the preparatory foundations for all new school facilities for our students. In many places all over the islands, our schools look more like rundown shacks rather than proper educational facilities. People are always talking about their communities and how to make them better, well what better way than to have educational facilities that function in creative ways to invite everyone in the local community to partake in what they have to offer.

We also want to diversify the options students have as they progress through their educational levels by providing: apprenticeships, vocational training, understudy programs, focused training and advanced education for those that already know what they wish to do. Incorporating open programs of instruction, for those that want to know more than just one subject, would also go a long way at relieving the stress from many students that have no idea as to what they want to do with their lives.

The focus will no longer be just on college. The focus will shift more on technical skills, tech schools, trade schools, entrepreneurial programs and the like.

We would ensure that all higher education is free for public colleges and universities, thereby helping to end the tragic state of student debt that has so many engulfed and stressed for life. Private educational institutions will have strict new guidelines to operate under to ensure that they are fair, properly taking care of their students and that they are on par with the latest educational standards.

One major area that would need to be changed is how we teach our history and from what perspective. Here in Hawai'i we have a rich history long before Hawai'i became what it is today. And we should teach that history from the Hawai'ian perspective first and foremost. In order for our children to understand why Hawai'i is the way that it is and how it came to be what it is, a true narrative must be taught that does not sugar coat our history or sensors it.

We need to have real civic education programs that teach about our flawed system and the many laws that govern our daily lives. We need programs to create a new generation of super voters who are ready and engaged that would go a long way to maybe even lowering the voting age.

Healthcare
As the only complete democratic state in the union, there is no reason why Hawai'i should not have single payer healthcare, otherwise known as universal healthcare, for everyone. It is passed time that we move beyond complicated systems of healthcare that are completely for profit and where human life is dependent on the bottom line. And in an era where our federal government has been taken over by corrupt and inhuman individuals, it is up to us and the state of Hawai'i, to step up and do what is right for our people.

Your Life Matters...

It's Time To Take Care of All I want to be perfectly clear: there is no reason whatsoever that Hawai'i can not have a healthcare system that takes care of everyone. If there is anything that has shown that Hawai'i needs to step up and take care of its people, it is the terrible situation with our federal government.

When I speak of universal health care I don't just mean a medical system that streamlines administration thereby cutting down on costs and processing times. When I speak of a universal health care system I don't just mean one that covers all of the residents and citizens of Hawai'i. When I speak of a universal health care system I am referring to system that starts with our children and their food and the overall well being of all the people that reside in Hawai'i.

The connections between what we eat and our health are undeniable. So to are the connections between what we grow, how we grow it, what is in the dirt it is grown in and what is sprayed on it while it grows. Our health is dependent on clear air and clean water as well so don't limit your thinking into a box where universal health is merely a system that provides medical coverage for all citizens because it is not that simple.

A universal health system in Hawai'i will also include dental care, give you options for treatment aside from the standard pharmaceutical approach and focus more on the type of care you want versus trying to persuade you into giving you the care the old system is created to give you.

There are many old and new systems and ways of helping people to heal that are not talked about or even widespread as a result of the control that big pharma has on our doctors and healthcare. The creation of a fair and comprehensive system here will help to correct all of those flaws of our current system. Because of this, we can not be sacred to progress, to change and evolve. Your life matters, your health matters, and the amount of stress and worry that will be lifted from the general populace when they no longer have to worry whether being sick will bankrupt them or whether they can afford to get a broken arm looked at, will drastically increase the happiness of our beloved Hawai'i.

A universal healthcare system will:

Streamline care, simplify and drastically reduce logistics, saving you time and giving you greater access to the care you seek anywhere and anytime on the islands.

A big complaint both from patients and doctors is that they need more time and freedom to actually care for patients. A streamlined system will facilitate this most crucial aspect of care.

A huge aspect that will be eliminated with a universal healthcare system are the copay's.

Why are your mouth and teeth magically excluded from your healthcare? As though your mouth, what is contained within and what goes into it, does not play an integral part in your health. Dental and oral health will be integrated into a single payer system because digestion starts at the mouth.

The new universal healthcare law will also ban any and all drug advertisements in Hawai’i.

A new healthcare system will no longer focus solely on medicines and pills as the go to for everything. Food, medicinal plants and herbs as well osteopathic care and exercise will play a major role.

We need to reduce the reliance on prescription drugs and drastically change the rules on opioids.

Expand the use of medical cannabis and other plants by fully legalizing them and testing them for practical uses to get away from over prescribing medications and opioids.

Educate the populace on the dangers of consuming too many processed sugars and the connections between what you eat and your health.

This is also by no means a fully comprehensive list. As we collaborate and speak with more progressive professionals we will update our info but rest assured that the way forward is a universal healthcare system.

Housing
Housing is a touchy issue with many people. Those that are rich and wealthy have one view point. Those that are struggling to get by have a whole other outlook. Then you have the houseless, whose viewpoint is vastly different than all others. The truth is that WE ALL NEED housing. So then why is it criminal and illegal to live inside anything aside from a house or an apartment here in Hawai'i? Another important question to ask is for whom are we building all this new housing? There are all kinds of contradictions and problems and we aim to tackle them all at the root.

Acknowledging the Truth.

There are many different approaches that can be taken to tackle the housing issue. Most politicians or career political pundits believe that people just need to get an education and then get a good paying job and they will be able to afford a home. Those types of ignorant statements, and ways of thinking, completely ignore what is happening all around us and the circumstances that manifested our current status as a state. Moreover, the general attitude is that the rights of residents come secondary to investors, large property owners, and large land owners.

I realize that to many, what you will read, might be controversial in light of the current status quo. But, in light of the problems that we have in the housing economy of Hawai'i, I believe we must have a resident first approach. This approach must solve the problems at the root, and there lies the big difference. Almost all other solutions you hear are only band aids that skirt the problems and keep them in perpetuity while simultaneously blame shifting. Why? Because who wants to commit political suicide by talking about real solutions to permanently fix problems? Certainly not elected officials that are also corporate sponsored politicians.

Regardless, it does not change the truth: we need to seriously consider ideas that will actually solve our housing issues. Ideas like resident first housing, tax increases on the rich, change the rules for those that do not reside in Hawai'i and yet purchase land and housing from afar, new housing construction methods and materials, new rules and taxes for Airbnb style rentals, decriminalizing houselessness, and actually helping the kupuna who are on fixed income with their housing so that they do not become houseless.

In the end there is no easy way out of the housing crisis we are in. And these are but a few of the ideas we will be introducing. The fundamentals you need to ask yourself are, if housing is a human right/need, then why are the homeless criminalized? Why is it only legal to live in a home or apartment and not in a van, camper, trailer, or car? (especially if we don't want houseless on the streets) Do I want the houseless criminalized or housed? And lastly, will our current path and solutions solve our problems or continue them in perpetuity? Because so far, nothing has gotten better.

The Houseless
I want to be perfectly clear: the houseless are the byproduct of our systems of doing things and the status quo. We must first admit that Houselessness is a byproduct of our society and find ways to eliminate Houselessness in our Island home.

We Will No Longer Criminalize the Houseless

People are struggling. The rent is too just too high. Struggling families and the homeless should not be criminalized. Hiding the homeless out of the public eye in shelters or sweeps is not a permanent solution. We need to do more.

The State must revamp its outlook on the houseless to meet the needs of our population. We must be compassionate and loving while at the same time we must be the parent to the child by helping to educate, empower and uplift. We must find creative ways to help our most vulnerable citizens such as looking at what other states are doing.

States such as Minnesota and California have shown that Affordable Housing Plans work. Creating more opportunities for housing, and special housing for our kupuna (elders), is essential.

Concerted efforts engaging AmeriCorps, private sector groups such as Habitat for Humanity, and other organizations are desperately needed. We must listen to and work with, not against, our housing reform and homelessness activists. We must incorporate mental health professionals, drug and addiction programs, and job training programs into our solution. 21 cities in the continental United States are participating in the "Promise Zone" program, which incorporates AmeriCorps volunteers, HUD, and others to provide comprehensive, lasting solutions. Why shouldn't Hawaii be part of an initiative such as that or why can’t we find a solution that works for our Islands? Here are some ideas we need to seriously consider if we are to move forward:

•Restructure, replace if necessary, and properly fund current programs, both public and private, first.

•Unite and cooperate with all groups and activists both public and private in order to have a well organized mission.

•Create state of the art rehab, addiction and transition centers for the houseless.

•Apply multi stage solutions in order to decrease the houseless population by at least 70% by the end of four years time.

•Create and establish education and a culture of respecting all houseless individuals and families by setting an example for the rest of the world through aloha.

•Start the process of getting away from traditional home design and construction with old materials and begin introducing new modular designs with eco friendly materials.

•Create prefab housing with local manufacturing. Explore 3d printed homes.

•Begin mapping all old homes in dire need of repair or replacing and work with home owners to assure they do not become houseless.

•Income based housing on no more than 30% base income after taxes.

•Restructure the housing authority to actually house low income people.

The simple bottom line is: anyone that works a full time job should not live in poverty or be homeless. And right now couples, working three jobs, while going to school, are homeless. We can no longer allow situations like this to keep manifesting and to continue.

Renewable Energy
The biggest expense for most people in Hawai'i is energy. Why? Simple, because we are dependent on imported energy sources for most of our power. So what do we do? We need to go all out and transform our energy production in the state as fast as humanly possible from eighteenth century energy sources to 21st century renewables.

We Have Solar Spills Every Day. I know this seems like a no brainer, but I will go ahead and get into it anyway. Becoming energy independent by 2045 seems like a goal we can just coast to right? Wrong. With entire nations making giant strides towards ending their dependency on fossil fuels and a few countries having achieved the completely renewable energy mark, and we, as an island chain in the middle of the Pacific, can not afford to take our time on this.

One good thing I see more and more of is solar panels. There are all kinds of rules and regulations behind people trying to go solar. We need to clear the way for people that want to go off grid and for those that wish to create smaller community grids.

The creation of power grids, in its day, was a huge boon to society. Suddenly the marvels of electricity where available to all. We have now reached a point where technology, again, has empowered us to be able to independently generate our own power. This essential advancement negates the need for a centralized power facility.

As we look forward to where these technologies will take us, we must acknowledge the changes that are necessary. We must shift from main grids, to smaller localized grids. And we must transform our power lines and electrical grid systems to suit what will be the new standard.

Alternative energy needs to be the new primary energy: Solar, wind, wave. We need to:

•Use each intelligently based on geography across the islands

•Not all areas will use energy the same way but all areas will use clean energy

•Convert all vehicles to electric.

•Have Hawai’i invest in battery technology advancements and start ups.

As our energy future changes from week to week, so to must we be prepared to upgrade and change our approach to energy. Resiliency is the name of the game and right now Hawai'i has a long way to go. I believe that the sooner we can transform ourselves, the more secure and independent Hawai'i will be.

Infrastructure
Much like the rest of the U.S., Hawai'i's infrastructure can definitely do with some upgrades. There are many areas that have gone unpaved for years. Other areas need repaving that have been decades overdue. We've had rolling blackouts and our power grid is old to say the least. Although we are supposed to have amazing water quality, what good does that do if the pipes degrade it by the time it gets to your home? We need to rethink the whole thing.

Upgrade & Innovate

The handling of our states infrastructure is no small task. Scientists and engineers of all types work on the issues that we have. And there certainly is no easy answer or even one answer to solve them all. It is very expensive to do major infrastructure overhauls and yet it must be done.

The city and state have made some efforts in ensuring that our roads get redone and maintained. You can see it in certain areas as the work progresses. But as new technologies come out our outdated methods and tools become more and more obsolete.

It is about time that we caught up with other areas of the world and started to use innovation and field test new things here in Hawai'i, such as permeable roads, new construction methods, new construction tools, decentralized power systems, water purification and distribution systems, and energy production from our water.

One curious thing that is being done all over, not just in Hawai'i, is how we force our pedestrians, cyclists, and motorists all to compete for right of way on the streets. Even with the use of bike lanes and sidewalks, when it comes time to cross the street, very often, if your not waiting on one, your waiting on another.

Denmark has done a wonderful job of innovating solutions to these types of problems and I believe that the answer to shortening our traffic and making commuting more enjoyable for all, lies within countries or states that have applied solutions to these very issues.

We have all sorts of issues here with our infrastructure. From parking, to traffic, to an old grid and old pipes underground. Many of our systems where never really designed to take the future into consideration. There is little resiliency in our systems and most are vulnerable to many types of disruption. My goal as Governor is to revamp all of our infrastructure in order to make all of Hawai'i more resilient and adaptable to the changes the future is bound to bring.

Agriculture
How did Hawai'i go from being able to grow and provide food for about nine hundred thousand people sustainably to having to import somewhere around 90% of our food? When did it become a good idea in this modern era of innovation and technology, to use chemical poisons to such an extent that our food, land, water, plants, and animals are all being poisoned? This has made Hawai'i extremely vulnerable and we must fix that.

No Convincing Required To Get People To Eat Clean Food. I want you to think about that for a minute. It doesn't matter if you eat meat or only veggies, if I came up to you and said, here, you can eat the meal on the right which is organic and free and clear of poisons and GMO's or you can eat the meal on the left, which has GMO's, poisons have been sprayed on them to kill pests and the GMO ones have insect poison built into them. Which would you choose?

The vast majority of us would choose the clean organic meal. I'm sure some don't care and that's ok. But when it comes to our agriculture here in Hawai'i what we place onto our food before it hits the dinner table, goes into the air, it goes into the soil, it goes into the water, gets absorbed by plants and micro-organisms, it ends up in our water, it ends up in our oceans.

That is why this matters so much. There are ways and methods to grow food sustainably which do not involve poisons and chemicals that affect EVERYTHING. And yet the producers of those poisons claim no responsibility to the affect their chemicals have on the people and the environment. So first and foremost we must deal with this issue because it affects all.

Here is what we need to do in order to create a more sustainable Hawai'i and to clean up our food:

Increase investment in local food production, yesterday.

Reclaim agricultural lands as well as prevent any development on those lands whatsoever.

Create major incentives for non GMO small farms and organic farming to kick start the industry in Hawai’i.

Encourage and incentivise crop rotation farming for each island.

Reduce our imports of food to 10% and increase our food production to 90%

Mandate that supermarkets prioritize purchasing local fruits and vegetables before importing them.

End pesticide use as we know it and apply other effective methods that do not poison our lands, air, water and people.

Protect our agricultural produce better by working to eradicate invasive species.

Restore and put to use as many of the ahupuahas as possible across the islands

Mandate green rooftops wherever practical.

Begin the process of establishing vertical farms and indoor farms across the state.

Prevent any landowner, corporation, business, or individual from redirecting water to prevent others from using.

This is no easy task. And it isn't a simple issue. But the fundamental facts do not change: we are poisoning ourselves and everything around us with our standard practices.

If we don't get serious about what needs to be done to clean up our food supply and to increase our resiliency by growing the vast majority of what we eat, Hawai'i's people and economy will always be dependent and vulnerable.

Trash & Recycling
Our garbage is a resource. We can not look at old cars, furniture, and other waste as something to just be thrown out for someone else to deal with. Just look at Kamilo Beach on the big island. That is a world of someone elses garbage washing up on our door step. We need to build state of the art recycling facilities on each island, in proportion to their waste production, to turn our trash into a resource.

It's Time We Stepped Up Our Garbage Game. No one really likes to deal with their own garbage. Even in your own home, chances are, that when it comes time to take out the garbage, you can't wait to get it out and away so you can forget about it and go on with your day. Beyond that, most people don't give the garbage they produce another thought.

Here in Hawai'i we can no longer afford to treat our garbage as something that is for someone else to worry about. Why? Because we are that someone else and the worlds garbage is swirling around the oceans in giant garbage gyres and a lot of it is ending up on our shores here in Hawai'i. If we do not proactively do something about this, we will literally be living and swimming in our own garbage.

That will affect our quality of life.

That will affect peoples desire to want to visit Hawai'i.

That will harm our plant and animal life in and out of the water.

That will affect all oceanic traffic.

We bury our garbage. We burn it for energy. We also ship it out of state for someone else to deal with. It is the year 2017, we are living in the future, do those three things seem like something we should still be doing?

In the renewable energy section I cover what we should do energy wise but some of it bears repeating here. By switching to renewable energy as fast as humanly possible we can end the trend of burning our garbage for fuel or burying it underground.

That just leaves us with more garbage! What to do with it? Well, being as we have all sorts of garbage here both locally produced and imported by the oceans, the only logical thing to do is to build our own state of the art recycling facilities. By doing so we will be equipped to handle our own refuse in a way that can turn it into a resource of materials that we can then use locally for our own means and ends.

What would that do? One big thing it would is it would reduce our need to import as many raw materials we do. It would also provide concentrated, well designed and purposeful areas for garbage to be delivered both by our amazing service workers but also by you, the people.

There are many places here in Hawai'i were garbage is just dumped by local residents. Everything from abandoned cars to entire household appliances. If we had a place where those items could be delivered, broken down, and then recycled, with an added monetary incentive for what the raw materials are worth, it would go a long way for people to clean up our aina.

This includes creating a legitimate state wide composting program with various sites and easy access.

We need Hawai'i to be as self reliant and self dependent as possible. By creating our own ecosystem within our islands that enables us to reuse and re-purpose old items or to recycle them for the raw materials, we won't have to worry that someone else in some other part of the world will be swimming in our garbage or that some animal will die because they ate it.

We need to:

Create state of the art recycling facilities on each island.

Once the facilities are built we would start a state wide clean up effort to get all garbage to those facilities.

Create state sponsored repair shops and re-purposing sites to encourage people to repair their broken things or use them for other things.

Ban the use of materials and chemicals not yet proven safe to the environment or stop using things that we already know are harmful.

Eliminate the need to burn trash/rubbish by converting everything to solar/wind/wave energy.

Harness the materials gathered from recycling for local sale and manufacturing.

The end goal is for us to have a garbage shortage and to no longer have to bury any of it, ship it elsewhere, or burn it for energy. Wouldn't it be wonderful to live in a state that was so clean and full of durable and reusable materials that other places started paying us to take their garbage?

Trade - Import and Export
Hawai'i imports the vast majority of what we use and consume. The Jones Act is responsible for us not being able to get these imports directly to us, thereby increasing the cost of everything. We must decrease our dependency on imports and then do something about the Jones Act.

Do We Want To Remain Dependent For Almost Everything? To me, it goes without saying that we must become more independent in what we produce and consume. At a time when climate change is affecting everything, we first and foremost must grow and consume the vast majority of our own food. Whether it is in traditional farms or vertical farms in the cities and towns or a combination thereof, it is imperative that we not rely in imports to feed us. The consequences of this could be disastrous if we do not change.

We also import the vast majority of our building materials. If we create a strong and large hemp industry we can greatly decrease our need to import certain construction materials. Right alongside that Hawai'i lacks its very own state of the art recycling facilities. I mean let's face it, Hawai'i produces a ton of waste and an ever increasing amount of it is floating in the garbage gyres to the north and south of the islands with quite a bit of it ending up on our shores. Just look up Kamilo beach of garbage.

What does this mean? With such a production of and an influx of garbage we have a very unorthodox resource that we need to tap into. By building our own modern recycling facilities we can tap into the material resources that will produce to lessen our need on imported materials.

We should also try to build new trading relationships and strategies to lessen the cost of our imports. And if through recycling and better management of our resources we can produce more goods to export, we can help Hawai'is economy even more.

Lastly, the Jones Act. It goes without saying that modifying the Jones Act intelligently would be beneficial to more than just Hawai'i. The law was created in 1920 before Hawai'i became a state. In that time the plantation owners of Hawai'i didn't like the extra tariffs they had to pay when they exported their goods to the mainland. And while turning Hawai'i into a state helped them with that, the Jones Act was never written to take Hawai'i into consideration. As such, as is often the case in these modern times, we need to revisit old laws and change, amend or completely rewrite them in order to keep up with the rate of change in our world.

We are but a relatively small group of islands in the middle of the worlds largest ocean, dependent on foreign fuel, foreign supplies, and foreign food. This must change. In order to achieve these changes we need to raise awareness about this very critical issue until we have the momentum to get it changed in order to lower the cost of living for us all.

Transportation
Here in Hawai'i this is a very interesting issue. We all want to get around easier but don't want to give up our gas guzzlers. We want to protect the islands and nature but have no problem building major roads and highways through them all. We have an island chain but no ferry for inter-island travels. It is obvious that we all need to get around to do our daily business and not all solutions will make people happy.

We Have To Square With Necessity and Reality. RAIL

Lets face the most obvious issue first: the rail. Lets keep it simple, we have been lied to from the get go. You, me, and everyone else and no matter how you view the rail that is an undeniable fact. If you look back at what we were told and then sold versus what has transpired, it is clear it was all lies. If you believe nothing else look up how much we were told it would cost versus how much it has cost. It is, per capita, the most expensive rail project in the world, and is expected to get even more so.

This hearkens back to government corruption. We were sold a bill of lies in order to get approval, then after approval, the truth comes out along with the logic of: well, too late to back out now, forward! At who's expense?, is the first question. The second question is, who is getting paid over this? This whole project fulfills the tried and true motto of the wealthy and corrupt: privatize the gains, socialize the costs.

The rail should provide for it's own power. O'ahu's power grid isn't built to handle such a large and sudden demand for power from the rail. As such, the rail should provide it's own power through a combination of wind, solar, and wave. How can we build a rail for so much money, have it be yesterdays technology and not have it provide for its own power?

CARS

We must set a concrete date to work towards for the transition to 100% electric vehicles. If we are to bring our costs of living down across the state, one of those must accomplish tasks is the end of our dependency on fossil fuels.

Our islands are only so big. There is an actual physical limit as to how much we can build and how many cars can exist and operate on the islands. That isn't including the actual limitations of our road infrastructure either. No matter how you feel about it, we will have to square with the notion that we will have to somehow regulate the number of vehicles on the islands.

One of the boons of electric vehicles is that they are so quiet. When Hawai'i finally becomes all electric, we will look back at the days of super loud and noisy cars, trucks, and motorbikes and wonder how did we ever put up with all that noise?

Well there isn't a day goes by that some child isn't spooked or made to cringe and or cry over super loud vehicles. I have lost quite a bit of sleep at the sound of cars racing at night and motorcycles needlessly revving their engines. The owners of these vehicles feel they have every right to do so. And many in fact purchase these loud vehicles and parts just for the sound they make. It may sound cool and sweet, but they have a very real effect on others. Yet another issue we will have to tackle.

Government & Elections
Greed. Corruption. Money. Our government seems to be rife with these three. For all the progress we make here in Hawai'i, I can never help but to think about how much further and faster we could progress if the corruption wasn't so severe. Our elections basically pave the way for corruption and most people are so entrenched in the status quo of thinking, that they don't see it. Well, I do, and it needs to change.

The Status Quo Has Got To Go. It really is quite amazing at the amount of progress our state has made given the amount of corruption that we have here. When I speak of corruption though, I refer to the subtle and almost undetectable type of corruption that occurs the moment moral courage fails in the light of a conflict of interest. The sort of thing that happens everyday when a friend, a family member, or a business partner asks you to make them more important than doing what is right.

We have many different cultures here in Hawai'i from many different countries. Every single one of them has their own unique sense of family, loyalty, and respect. Those loyalties usually end up leaking into office with whomever gets elected. And very quickly, what should have been an elected person who's loyalty is to the islands and its people, ends up being a person that gives into favors, money, favoritism, and pet projects instead of serving the greater good.

Sure we have regular corrupt individuals. They aren't hard to find, just follow the money and wealth. Remember, getting into government does not make you rich. And yet how many have done just that?

This ties right into elections. We need fair elections in which money and name recognition does not create the winners. We also do not live in a monarchy in which one can just announce who should succeed them. Elections should be about ideas that solve our problems to move us forward and progress. And yet they are anything but that.

Some Ideas

We need to create term limits so that we can end career politicians. While you can make a career working government jobs, holding political office and jumping from office to office should not be a career move. Why? Because then it becomes about winning elections to maintain power and influence instead of representing the people. If you are running for office with the sole motive to win at all costs, you aren't running to represent anyone but yourself. (and your donors)

No more unopposed elections. For every office there must be at least two people to choose from. If there is no second person, the election for that seat will be postponed until someone else signs up to run. There should never be a free pass to office.

All elections should be publicly funded. No more he or she who raises the most wins.

All candidates should be afforded ample screen, ad, and interview time. The state should sponsor all candidates equally with equal chances at being heard and interviewed so that the populace is well informed at what their choices are. It is the responsibility of the state to see that the populace is not only well educated but also well informed. It should be no different with elections.

There should be a debate system in place as well as a thorough interview process for the public to see and hear. Relying on political parties, big media, PAC's, Super PAC's, and other special interest groups, invites corruption, favoritism and opens the doors for candidates like Donald Trump.

It is important to remember that no matter how you feel about the ideas you see above, that it is our current system that has allowed people like Donald Trump and worse into office. We must change our rules and processes, see how effective they are and then work to improve them. We can not be afraid of changing things, trying new things, and seeing if they work. Our islands and planet will either suffer more or be alleviated by who we elect. In order to elect differently and new, we must change and try something new and different otherwise our results will always be the same.

The Kingdom
The United States political and propaganda machine is very adamant about the things they want the populace to never forget as well as the things they do want you to forget. But in a world and in a society made up of many different peoples and cultures there are many different histories, atrocities, crimes, and injustices that exist simultaneously. Here in Hawai'i, the people will never forget what was done and is being done to them.

Healing Begins With One Simple Act. The first and most important thing to acknowledge is that no one person can decide the fate of an entire people. I will not attempt to state what needs to be done and by whom. It is the responsibility of the Kingdom of Hawai'i's descendants to organize for themselves and re-establish who they are and what they wish to become as a people.

My aim will be to help them and to empower them to do so. One of the first official steps I will take is to acknowledge the history and the act of the overthrow of the Kingdom of Hawai'i and make it clear that the foundation of Hawai'i as a state was not a simple matter of fact. We are the inheritors of all that transpired to bring us to where we are and just like so many will never forget what happened in Pearl Harbor, so too do the originators of these islands never forget what was done to them.

The sense that many people have that makes them believe that they have to speak or act in the best interest of the native Hawai'ians, without even consulting with them, is an insult.

Too often, and with no known exception, every major government, state, or country, has been established through colonialism of some sort. And as of yet, no major country that I know of has seen to try to make amends for their nations, or states, past transgressions beyond just words. That maintains a long standing tradition of nations conveniently ignoring the truth behind how they came to be.

I will strive to make amends. I will strive to do what, to my knowledge, has never been done: to forge a path forward. There is no example to follow, no road to serve as a guide, but the end goal is to uplift and empower a people that for too long now have been the victims that everyone chooses to forget because it is convenient.

There is a difference between doing what is right and what is easy, and I choose to do what is right by acknowledging the past first and foremost.

Courts & The Judicial System
Why is it that the average person on the street often refers to the Courts and the Judicial system as the department of injustice or the injustice system? Is it because everyone gets fair treatment? Or could it be because our system is so simple and uncomplicated that anyone can get a fair day in court without the need to hire a lawyer? We are honestly selling ourselves short if we think that this version of injustice is the best we can do as intelligent human beings. We can do better. We have to do better.

Criminalizing Everyone Is Not The Answer. It should not strike anyone as a surprise that our system of courts and law is severely flawed. I really hate to say it but we arbitrarily jail both the innocent and the guilty alike. What's even worse, is that many non violent offenders get worse and longer jail/prison terms than violent offenders. The system is: punish by making you pay and then making you pay to play if you want a decent chance at fairness.

There are many good people working within the system trying to make it fair and just, but even they will tell you that it is severely flawed and needs to change.

We need to:

Fix problems with the courts to address fairness and accessibility to public defenders.

Increase funding to hire more public defenders.

Courts vary depending on governance. Create stability and continuity through constitutional amendment and or convention.

Establish new rules for training of judges at all levels.

Increase the use of community service versus other forms of punishment.

Decriminalize all marijuana possession, mushrooms, hemp and other plants.

Pardon all non violent marijuana offenders from jail.

End the practice of shipping our inmates to the mainland.

Reform our jails and prisons to be both completely transparent and humane. Ban the use of solitary confinement.

Investigate prison abuse and why prison deaths are covered up and hold those individuals accountable.

Build rehabilitation centers and education facilities for average non violent offenders.

Only jail the habitually violent criminals for long terms while still focusing on humane treatment and mental rehabilitation wherever possible.

End the practice of jailing the mentally ill and homeless.

Those that are wrongfully arrested or are found to be innocent should not have a record that affects their job options for the rest of their life.

When the state fails to abide by a law that they created, the law should be unenforceable until it is fixed.

Empower lower courts to determine not just whether a person is wrong but also whether the state, police, or law is wrong and also to reimburse residents as well as damages as necessary.

This is by no means a fully comprehensive list, but it goes without saying that in light of all the flaws in our courts and judicial processes, we have enough data, evidence, and feedback to reform our system and make it better. The attitude that we have the best system and therefore we don't need to change it, or the attitude that it's what we got and you just have to play the game because it's not going to change, has no place in a progressive society that aims to be more humane, fair and just. And in the land of aloha we need to stop just saying that word and actually apply it to all the functions of our daily lives.

Police & Law Enforcement
It is a rather overlooked irony that Hawai'i residents that are employed as law enforcers, are mired in so many controversies that involve them breaking and or violating the law. Being that that is the case, shouldn't we do something about it?

Pro change and complete reform, not anti Law Enforcement. Why is it that when we talk about government corruption, everyone nods their heads in acknowledgement. Then, when one shifts the subject and talks about police corruption, suddenly the air gets very still?

I love humanity. It is the reason why I am choosing to engage into controversial political subjects in lieu of a normal quiet life. But the fact remains, if we are to do something about our corrupt government, regular people need to stand up and speak the truth. The same goes for law enforcement.

I have great respect for those that wear a badge. The things is, with that badge comes enormous responsibility. As a law enforcer, first and foremost you must be the example. The only way to do that is to obey the law, to follow it to the letter as you go about your duties, and when the law becomes destructive or harmful to the people you are supposed to protect, you must either question or stand down from enforcement until that particular issue is addressed. This isn't a matter of policy, it is a matter common sense and decency, not to mention of the responsibility to do what is morally right.

Everyone that wears a badge has different strengths and weaknesses. That will make your average law enforcer resilient or susceptible to the corruption that can happen in their heart or mind because of the power of the badge.

Does that mean they get a blanket pass when they do wrong?

Does that mean they get special immunity from scrutiny or accountability?

Here in Hawai'i it is one controversy after another. And instead of adopting a policy of transparency and accountability, in order to maintain the public trust, secrecy, subversion and cover ups are the standard. At what point is enough, enough? I understand that law enforcers are human and the classic argument is that they are just doing their jobs. I understand that it is a tough job. Even so, you do not have the privileged position of saying you are just doing your job when what you do directly affects the lives of others and the trust that the residents of your communities and state have in you. The ramifications of that breach of trust are deep and can be severe.

We must re-establish trust with each other and with our law enforcers. In light of that, changes must be made.

Retrain all law enforcement on how to serve the people and their communities.

Increase the amount of training they receive in deescalation of force, non violent resolution, community relations, international law and basic human rights.

Change the rules and standards for hiring law enforcement officers.

End needless SWAT raids, especially when serving search warrants. Reserve SWAT for last resort.

Transition to non-lethal weapons and tactics.

Increase the quality of recruits through more stringent screening, higher standards of applicants and higher standards of graduation from training.

Create absolute transparency of their records and behaviors to the public to help with accountability and trust.

All police wrong doing that results in monetary awards shall come from their funding. No more forcing the public to pay for your mistakes.

Include regular psychological evaluations for all law enforcers, especially prior to hiring.

End internal unofficial policy: “the blue line.”

Law Enforcers will be held to a higher standard when dealing and interacting with fellow residents. This includes on or off duty, while driving or even eating in public.

Dismiss all law enforcers that have any history of violence at work or at home.

This isn't by any means a fully comprehensive list but it is a good start. The police in our state do a great many a job, from protecting our road workers to assisting motorists when they are in trouble and even in recovering stolen items. I want to help them. I want to improve their work atmosphere, to create an atmosphere of trust and accountability, I want to foster communication and better training. Being a police officer is tough work and I believe that by making some fundamental changes we can rebuild trust and simultaneously improve the moral and overall happiness of our law enforcers.

Clean Water
For most of us, when we think of clean water, we only think about the water we drink and or bathe in. When I speak of clean water, I refer to the need to have clean water for everything that depends on it. I'm referring to clean water for our plants, animals, and insects that reside on the islands. When I speak of clean water, I am referring to the countless fish and other life forms that reside in our bodies of water, whether it be a river, stream, lake, pond or the ocean itself.

Everything that lives in and around Hawai'i needs clean water, not just humans. Why is it that almost everywhere we live in Hawai'i, people are using water filters? Why do we see so many buying water for their homes or paying for water delivery services? Why is it that when one person moves from point a to b, the quality of their water can vary drastically? How come our beaches close every time there is storm? And why is there more and more garbage washing up on our shores?

Water is a big issue here in Hawai'i. How should we handle it?

I believe that we should:

Protect the most important element to our daily lives.

Clean up Red-Hill, hold military/Navy accountable for what they have done.

Stop water deviations by corporations, especially when those deviations hurt communities and the natural environment around it.

No one wants to surf in garbage. Having clean waves to enjoy and surf in will keep the beach goers and wave riders happy. Not to mention, can you imagine if no one wanted to surf our shores because of pollution?

Officially declare water a human right and establish that it belongs to nature first and then to the people.

Declare that loss of profit is not in any way a justification to privatize or lay claim to water.

Establish that land owners still do not own the water that runs through their land, as all water travels through and they have no right to try to exact greed over it but instead have a responsibility to make sure that it is both clean and unpolluted after it leaves their land.

Force major polluters to pay for water restoration and clean up.

Have the end goal of having all clean waterways once again in Hawai’i.

And this is just the beginning and by no means is a full and comprehensive list as each island has its own issues with water, They all need to be and will be addressed in a way that ends with clean water and access to it.

Invasive Species
Hawai'i can be identified as Hawai'i because of the native residents, plants, animals, and the geography of our islands. But how would you feel if you woke up one day to find that you didn't recognize any of the trees? How about if forests fires and or grass fires were to become common place? Or even, if you couldn't go hiking, exploring or sight seeing without seeing cats everywhere? Lots of tough decisions lay ahead but if we want to preserve and restore that which makes Hawai'i a jewel in the Pacific, we must not be afraid to be decisive.

To be Hawai'i, or not to be? The bottom line threat of invasive species boils down to this: do you want Hawai'i to be populated by native and indigenous plants and animals or do you want Hawai'i to turn into a clone of the mainland U.S. or various parts of Asia?

Plant ecosystems, animal and insect ecosystems, and our ocean ecosystems, are quite literally at stake. Did you know that 90% of Hawai'i's plants occur nowhere else?

The reason why so many invasive species thrive here is because Hawai'i has the vast majority of the many different ecosystem types. On top of that, the plant species that evolved here do not have the self defense mechanisms that invasive species do. Why can't they defend themselves against predation, infestation and other types of attack? Simple, they evolved in an environment where there were little to no predators throughout the entire course of their evolution which negated the need for any defense mechanisms. As a result, our plants get out competed by aggressive, fast growing plants from elsewhere.

There are many groups, outside of the state funded programs, that are working diligently and consistently to do their part to control the spread of invasive species or to eradicate them entirely. There are groups working both on the land and in the water on this issue.

I believe that we must increase the funding for our invasive species programs. We must embark on more extensive educational campaigns as well as making more time to educate the public and tourists on their way in to visit Hawai'i. Having more eyes and ears that are trained to identify invasive species will only help the state of Hawai'i to control the problem. But, we must be very proactive in our fight.

It isn't just invasive plants that we are fighting though. There are invasive ferile cats, invasive algae, invasive snails, invasive beetles, and the list goes on. Ultimately we have to decide and act on the invasive species that are threatening various parts of our islands. To not act is to silently approve of the changes these species will make and to disavow responsibility of the destruction they will cause.

I believe that with greater funding, awareness, education and coordination, we can effectively manage the invasive species and allow our endangered, native, and endemic species to thrive once again.

Taxes
Taxes aren't rocket science. The state needs taxes in order to raise revenue. That revenue is then used to provide services to the people in the form buses, infrastructure, water, street lights, etc. Taxes also pay state employees. From elected officials to the Police that patrol our streets.

The problems begin when those that have less are asked to pay more and those that have more pay a lot less.

The problems continue when your tax dollars are misspent.

And what is worse is that there is little to no motivation to improve our tax system or to reform it so that it is more efficient, less wasteful, fair, but most importantly, that it is used to also empower the populace. How exactly? Read on to find out.

Some sense and some out of the box thinking.

Short and Sweet. There is very little political will in Hawai'i to do something about the tax rates in various areas. Why? Easy, political disagreements, ideological disagreements, corruption and pressure from corporations and the rich. Their philosophy for the most part has always been to socialize the costs to those below them and to privatize the gains all for themselves. Whenever that model is challenged, they rise against it. It is time we change that.

My views on what we need to do as a state are simple:

Increase the taxes on the rich and wealthy.

Simplify the state tax system so that it is easier to navigate and understand for everyone.

Cut out needless administrative time and costs as well as doing away with any and all loopholes.

Create a state system so that state residents may file taxes free of cost. This will help in reducing the number of people that have to pay for services online or in person.

Relieve the tax burden on the poor and low income.

Change how we tax homes, home rentals, foreign own housing, non resident owned housing, Airbnb style rentals, and a whole lot more.

The end goal is to refine that tax system so that it is simple, uncomplicated, and increases taxes on the rich, raises revenue for the state more efficiently, and relieves the tax burden on the poor and low income.

We would also like to introduce a new idea to Hawai'i: choosing what your tax money goes to. We want to try a pilot program whereby once residents file their taxes, they can choose to allocate what state programs they want to fund in contrast to others. The first couple of years of the program would be for data gathering purposes and then a full program would be tested following the trial. But this is just one idea out of many that could work or should be tried here in Hawai'i if we are to truly change things for the better.

Think about how empowering that would be and how that would affect how a state operates. Only by trying new ideas, evaluating the results and trying again, will we ever break out of the status quo when it comes to your tax dollars and what is done with them.

Fishing Industry
Hawai'i's fishing industry is at a crossroads. On the one hand our fishing industry makes its living from the fish in the sea. One the other hand, fish populations are at critical levels and every year they get smaller and smaller. If we continue on our present path, the ecosystems will collapse in the near future, which in turn means there will be no way for the fisheries and their fisherman to earn a living. I have a solution in the form of a proposal to help them both.

Use Your Boats to Fish or Something Else? Let me start by saying, I am not against fishing nor am I anti fisherman. I love to eat fish as a matter of fact. I used to love to fish with my grandfather. But what I am about now is taking care of the fish and the oceans and making sure that there is something there for our future generations to eat.

We need to let fish be fish, to thrive and multiply. We have let our greed take over what we consume. Before we used to fish for what we wanted to eat, now we fish to catch as much as we can to make as much money as we can. We have become corrupted and now we are having to square with paying the price of our greed and over consumption.

It is an undeniable fact that the number of fish in the sea has been steadily declining for some years now. With bigger boats, larger nets, bigger fleets, and a growing demand, we have plundered the oceans bounty to the point where there are more garbage/polluting particulates in the oceans than there are fish for us to eat. Think about that. We have replaced fish with garbage.

There is plenty of literature out there to show that if we continue on our current path, before 2050, our oceans major ecosystems will likely collapse. I believe that it will likely happen well before that if we don't act now. The problem is that if there is any kind of a moratorium on fishing, immediately the fisheries are up in arms, and rightly so, as that is how they make a living. And for most, that is all they know. So the question becomes, how do we take the pressure off of our oceans ecosystems so that they may recover and regenerate for future use and still provide the fisheries a way to use their skills and equipment to earn a living? I have an idea that just might be able to address those issues: we create an international ocean clean up trust.

What are the details? Stay tuned for that as we will reveal the full idea behind the plan once the election really kicks off.

Let's keep it real The sad truth is that there is all sorts of contamination in the oceans as it is. In the Pacific Ocean we are dealing with all kinds of garbage that is both inside the fish and other sea life like dolphins, whales, and turtles. And to make matters worse there is the addition of nuclear radiation from the Fukushima disaster in Japan.

Radioactive water has been leaking into the Pacific Ocean for years now. It has spread to pretty much every corner of the Pacific and beyond.

This matters because all of this and more is in our fish. Then we eat it without a thought just because we like or love the taste of fish. For others it's more a matter of tradition or a primary food source.

I don't want you to live in ignorance of what is going on in our oceans. I want you to be informed so that we may act. The more we know the better armed we will be when it comes time to do something about these issues. And the time to act, is now.

We have been kicking the can down the road for decades now, refusing to take responsibility for our pollution. And this is the whole world we are talking about here, not just Hawai'i. The worlds garbage and pollution infests the ocean all around us. Not a single state or country has stepped up to honestly do something about this astronomically enormous issue. No one person can solve it and no one state can fix it.

Hawai'i being positioned where it is can not afford to ignore what is happening and we cannot fail to act. So this becomes a two fold issue: 1) the decline of our fisheries. 2) the pollution of the oceans and by extension, the contamination of our fisheries.

It is up to you as to how we move forward. Join me and our campaign for Governor, and let's take charge of our future.

Labor
Most major corporations nowadays are raking in record profits. The kind of profits that could easily pay for living wages for their employees. On the other hand, many small businesses are struggling to get by for one reason or another. And yet, there are some small businesses that are doing really well and they still do not pay their employees a living wage. A whole separate issue is how more and more human beings are asked to operate, think like, and act like robots. What to do?

Human Workers Are Not Robots. Workers Are Not Slaves. Every group of workers here in Hawai'i has the right to unionize. It is through collective bargaining that workers can bargain for higher wages, better benefits, all so they can have a living wage and not have to struggle through life while employed full time.

With that being said, it is the states job to ensure that it's citizens are protected, empowered, and uplifted. Ideally the state should be so responsive that the people should never have to unionize in order to ensure they are treated well and paid fairly. By extension one could argue that businesses and corporations should also have the consciousness of mind to pay their employees well and take care of them. But the truth is that historically, they don't. It always takes some kind of law and organizing to force them to behave and act in moral ways, kicking and screaming the whole way.

Laborers are the backbone of our State and the machine which keeps our economy going. Without Laborers, our state would not be able to operate. Unions are there for the tool in which the laborers are organized to demand better paying wages and conditions in which they operate. You cannot separate the laborer from the Union, by doing so you put the laborer at the mercy of the Management or Master as it was known in old Hawaii.

Not all people are in Unions and not all people agree with Unions but when it comes down to it, being in a Union does have its advantage. Unions are in place to protect workers, give them fair wages, and make the workplace safer.

The International Longshoremen and Ware-houseman's Union, the ILWU, unified the former Japanese and Filipino racial unions into Hawai‘i's biggest single union representing sugar, pineapple and long-shore workers across the island chain. In the seventies with the passage of the state's collective bargaining law for public employees, amongst the lowest paid and least secure workers whose employment and wages were generally at the mercy of political caprice, state and county, workers now had the right to bargain contracts and file grievances like their brothers and sisters in the private sector.

Today major corporations nowadays are raking in record profits. The kind of profits that could easily pay for living wages for their employees. On the other hand, many small businesses are struggling to get by for one reason or another. And yet, there are some small businesses that are doing really well and they still do not pay their employees a living wage. A whole separate issue is how more and more human beings are asked to operate, think like, and act like robots. What to do?

Laborers are productive and bring about economic gain.

Laborers are a people engaged in such activity, especially those working for wages.

Laborers are a people considered as a class.

We will support our Labores for better wages.

We shall insure more access to benefits.

We shall insure Job security through the Unions

We shall support the Unions to ensure that our workers jobs are not outsourced to third parties.

We shall support all our Unions in Hawaii that they may do justice for the workers.

We shall call upon for wages that are fair and the same as our peers in the states.

We shall see to it that all workers are paid fairly, regardless of race, sex, religion, and gender identification.

With technology advancing and with greatly accelerated changes in the jobs of the future, it is very important that we have transitionary systems for workers whenever their traditional line of work is phased out or replaced. Job security does not have to mean that you require absolute security in your current job in perpetuity. Job security should be something that fills you with ease because you know that if your life changes for one reason or another, there will be systems there to help you transition into another line of work.

In order to be more resilient in the face of all the issues we are facing we owe our workers the peace of mind they need in order to be happy while they are contributing to society.^[24]

”

—Friends of Ernest Caravalho^[27]

Colleen Hanabusa

“

Public education needs our support
One of our greatest responsibilities is the education of our future generations and workforce. We must support public education and Hawaii’s teachers, from our elementary schools to our trade schools and universities. Micromanaging only impedes progress, and we must reach beyond a small clique of advisors. We must promote inclusiveness and collaboration and work collectively toward educational excellence.

Hawaii needs living wages
Hawaii families need jobs with living wages so they can afford to stay in Hawaii. We cannot wait another four years while our young people choose to leave the islands to seek opportunities elsewhere. The state needs to partner with Hawaii’s economic and business sectors to create more pathways to success and provide wages that will enable our future generations to raise their families surrounded by ‘ohana in the islands we love and call home.

Affordable housing requires action
Hawaii has one of the highest housing costs in the nation, and one of the lowest rates of homeownership. The state must embrace an active role in creating and subsidizing affordable housing, while streamlining processes that enable people to get the housing they desperately need. The state needs to move forward on transit-oriented development and stop being short-sighted by selling off affordable family and senior housing which reduces our affordable housing inventory.

Addressing homelessness will take leadership
The state must actively lead and show true partnership with the counties in addressing homelessness statewide. While there are no easy answers, doing nothing – or doing the same things over and over again – will only make the problem worse. I will encourage new approaches by drawing, in part, on the successes achieved in other states and cities and do so in concert with the counties, non-governmental organizations and non-profits. We need to adopt more tools, including serious consideration of safe zones, so that we are not just chasing the problem from park to park, and underpass to underpass. We must have places for the homeless to go, and to get services to those who need it.

We must prepare for the future of healthcare
Hawaii is fortunate to have one of the highest rates of healthcare coverage under our Hawaii Prepaid Health Care Act. But, there is a growing sense we are behind on planning for the nationwide changes to healthcare and health coverage. What plans do exist remain unimplemented. We must protect the Hawaii Prepaid Health Care Act from any attempts to undermine it. We must also find ways to protect and improve healthcare for Hawaii’s kupuna and fund programs at levels that recognize the needs of Hawaii’s growing senior population.

We deserve better airports, highways and harbors
They are the transportation lifelines that connect people and businesses to each other and the world. They are essential to a healthy economy, our military and the visitor industry. Our airports must be first-class facilities that are points of pride for visitors and kamaaina. Our harbors must be modernized to lower the cost of goods to our residents and businesses. Our highways must be improved to connect our communities and sustain the growth of our economy. We have long-standing Airport Modernization Plans, Harbor Modernization Plans and a backlog of millions of federal dollars to spend on highways. I will prioritize putting these plans and dollars into action.

Rail must be managed, and completed
State taxes are the principle source of revenue for the Honolulu Rail Transit Project. As such, the state has a right to expect that taxpayer funds be expended appropriately and in the best interest of the taxpayers. Fraud, waste, abuse and mismanagement cannot be tolerated. The state must proactively oversee the City and County of Honolulu’s expenditures of state taxpayer funds. As governor, I will take an active role advocating on behalf of the taxpayers and will work closely with the Legislature and state auditor to monitor rail progress.

The state budget must reflect priorities and vision
The state budget is a policy statement, a blueprint of state priorities. I will not propose budgets that are called “schizophrenic” or have lawmakers require that I go back to the drawing board. As governor, our budget will reflect the priorities of our administration and the taxpayers will be able to hold me accountable for our priorities, fiscal discipline and smart management.

We must manage with competence and clarity
In order to restore the public’s faith in government, we must demonstrate daily that we are getting the job done on their behalf. On my watch, I will not stand for projects to be left to drift or problems to be swept under the carpet. From priority-setting, to internal controls, to effective bidding and contracting, we can do more, because Hawai‘i deserves better.^[24]

”

—Hanabusa for Governor^[28]

Pivot Counties

See also: Pivot Counties by state

There are no Pivot Counties in Hawaii. Pivot Counties are counties that voted for Barack Obama (D) in 2008 and 2012 and for Donald Trump (R) in 2016. Altogether, the nation had 206 Pivot Counties, with most being concentrated in upper midwestern and northeastern states.

In the 2016 presidential election, Hillary Clinton (D) won Hawaii with 62.2 percent of the vote. Donald Trump (R) received 30 percent. In presidential elections between 1960 and 2016, Hawaii voted Democratic 86.67 percent of the time and Republican 13.33 percent of the time. The only presidential elections from 1960 to 2016 where Hawaii voted for the Republican candidate were the elections in 1972 and 1984. Richard Nixon (R) and Ronald Reagan (R), respectively, won nearly every state in those elections.^[29] Hawaii voted Democratic in every presidential election from 2000 to 2016.

Presidential results by legislative district

The following table details results of the 2012 and 2016 presidential elections by state House districts in Hawaii. Click [show] to expand the table. The "Obama," "Romney," "Clinton," and "Trump" columns describe the percent of the vote each presidential candidate received in the district. The "2012 Margin" and "2016 Margin" columns describe the margin of victory between the two presidential candidates in those years. The "Party Control" column notes which party held that seat heading into the 2018 general election. Data on the results of the 2012 and 2016 presidential elections broken down by state legislative districts was compiled by Daily Kos.^[30]^[31]

In 2012, Barack Obama (D) won all 51 state House districts in Hawaii with an average margin of victory of 42.9 points. In 2016, Hillary Clinton (D) won all 51 state House districts in Hawaii with an average margin of victory of 31.7 points. Six of those districts were controlled by Republicans heading into the 2018 elections.

2016 presidential results by state House district
District	Obama	Romney	2012 Margin	Clinton	Trump	2016 Margin	Party Control
1	78.86%	18.99%	D+59.9	67.83%	22.93%	D+44.9	D
2	81.90%	16.56%	D+65.3	70.83%	20.79%	D+50	D
3	78.94%	18.86%	D+60.1	66.06%	24.28%	D+41.8	D
4	74.69%	20.89%	D+53.8	61.65%	26.42%	D+35.2	D
5	70.37%	27.44%	D+42.9	60.96%	30.41%	D+30.5	D
6	63.87%	34.13%	D+29.7	55.17%	36.08%	D+19.1	D
7	70.15%	27.80%	D+42.3	62.01%	28.48%	D+33.5	D
8	77.15%	21.48%	D+55.7	66.05%	24.87%	D+41.2	D
9	82.40%	16.67%	D+65.7	71.21%	21.87%	D+49.3	D
10	66.49%	31.34%	D+35.2	59.75%	31.99%	D+27.8	D
11	65.21%	32.49%	D+32.7	59.60%	31.32%	D+28.3	D
12	73.87%	23.66%	D+50.2	64.66%	24.79%	D+39.9	D
13	78.96%	18.21%	D+60.8	65.73%	21.35%	D+44.4	D
14	72.91%	23.66%	D+49.2	61.55%	28.21%	D+33.3	D
15	73.72%	24.41%	D+49.3	62.16%	30.30%	D+31.9	D
16	73.80%	24.28%	D+49.5	63.81%	27.75%	D+36.1	D
17	64.14%	34.73%	D+29.4	61.51%	32.48%	D+29	R
18	64.74%	34.13%	D+30.6	62.93%	31.13%	D+31.8	D
19	68.62%	30.02%	D+38.6	65.35%	28.24%	D+37.1	D
20	74.85%	23.28%	D+51.6	68.93%	24.22%	D+44.7	D
21	75.85%	22.20%	D+53.7	69.81%	22.91%	D+46.9	D
22	63.65%	33.95%	D+29.7	60.51%	32.82%	D+27.7	D
23	74.44%	23.74%	D+50.7	70.35%	22.60%	D+47.8	D
24	72.02%	26.06%	D+46	67.57%	25.28%	D+42.3	D
25	72.41%	25.81%	D+46.6	65.99%	26.66%	D+39.3	D
26	69.71%	28.67%	D+41	66.03%	27.94%	D+38.1	D
27	73.79%	24.89%	D+48.9	66.44%	27.44%	D+39	D
28	75.18%	23.76%	D+51.4	65.88%	27.53%	D+38.3	D
29	72.71%	25.65%	D+47.1	65.49%	27.73%	D+37.8	D
30	74.18%	25.14%	D+49	66.96%	27.11%	D+39.8	D
31	67.31%	31.63%	D+35.7	60.03%	33.91%	D+26.1	D
32	71.52%	27.25%	D+44.3	61.88%	31.86%	D+30	D
33	71.14%	28.00%	D+43.1	64.50%	29.83%	D+34.7	D
34	73.09%	25.92%	D+47.2	63.82%	30.29%	D+33.5	D
35	71.64%	27.28%	D+44.4	60.83%	33.40%	D+27.4	D
36	65.58%	33.62%	D+32	58.08%	35.51%	D+22.6	R
37	68.17%	30.78%	D+37.4	60.07%	33.75%	D+26.3	D
38	75.65%	23.90%	D+51.8	68.58%	27.30%	D+41.3	D
39	66.08%	33.05%	D+33	55.93%	37.10%	D+18.8	D
40	63.55%	35.44%	D+28.1	52.55%	41.16%	D+11.4	R
41	64.77%	34.18%	D+30.6	52.81%	39.86%	D+13	D
42	62.03%	36.85%	D+25.2	51.48%	41.06%	D+10.4	D
43	69.40%	29.09%	D+40.3	51.86%	39.48%	D+12.4	R
44	71.73%	26.37%	D+45.4	52.37%	37.93%	D+14.4	D
45	65.66%	32.94%	D+32.7	57.08%	35.06%	D+22	R
46	69.74%	29.10%	D+40.6	57.86%	34.83%	D+23	D
47	51.82%	46.23%	D+5.6	48.08%	40.22%	D+7.9	D
48	67.63%	31.05%	D+36.6	58.22%	33.67%	D+24.6	D
49	71.40%	27.44%	D+44	63.21%	29.76%	D+33.4	D
50	64.02%	34.41%	D+29.6	59.88%	31.83%	D+28	R
51	70.33%	28.32%	D+42	61.16%	30.89%	D+30.3	D
Total	70.55%	27.84%	D+42.7	62.22%	30.04%	D+32.2	-
Source: Daily Kos

Recent news

The link below is to the most recent stories in a Google news search for the terms Hawaii governor Democratic primary 2018. These results are automatically generated from Google. Ballotpedia does not curate or endorse these articles.

Hawaii gubernatorial election, 2018 (August 11 Democratic primary) - Google News

External links

Suggest a link

Governor of Hawaii official website

Footnotes

[1] Seattle Times, "Personality, not policy, set to define Hawaii governor race," September 5, 2017

[2] Civil Beat, "Ad Watch: Ige And Hanabusa On What Makes Them Different," June 19, 2018

[3] David Ige for Governor, "Home," accessed June 28, 2018

[4] FOX News, "Hawaii gov ousted in Dem primary, Senate race too close to call," August 10, 2014

[5] Rutgers University, "Gubernatorial Elections, 1948-2013," accessed June 28, 2018

[6] The Rutgers University study noted 34 governors who were defeated between 1948 and 2013. One additional governor, Neil Abercrombie (D-HI) was defeated between 2013 and 2018.

[Cayetano-7] 7.0 ^7.1 Big Island Video News, "Ige’s New Campaign Ad Features Endorsement From Mayor Kim," July 28, 2018

[8] Honolulu Civil Beat, "Gabbard Shakes Up Governor’s Race By Endorsing Hanabusa," January 24, 2018

[9] Hawaii News Now, "Former lieutenant governor endorses Ige challenger," March 28, 2018

[HanabusaMar29-10] 10.0 ^10.1 ^10.2 ^10.3 Honolulu Civil Beat, "Hawaii’s Top Lawmakers Unite Against Gov. Ige’s Re-Election," March 29, 2018

[11] Honolulu Star-Advertiser, "Lodging association endorses David Ige," accessed July 24, 2018

[12] Hawaii News Now, "State teachers union endorses Ige for Governor race," May 12, 2018

[13] Honolulu Star-Advertiser, "Unite Here Local 5 endorses Ige for governor," June 22, 2018

[14] Hawaii News Now, "Hawaii Carpenters Union endorses Hanabusa for governor," February 24, 2018

[15] KHON2, "SHOPO endorses Hanabusa for governor," April 2, 2018

[16] Honolulu Star-Advertiser, "Hawaii’s largest union throws its support to Hanabusa," June 12, 2018

[17] State of Hawaii Campaign Spending Commission, "View Reports & Fundraiser Notices," accessed July 18, 2018

[18] Be Change Now, "Home," accessed August 9, 2018

[19] Hawaii Public Radio, "Super PAC Spending Revealed," August 2, 2018

[20] Hawaii News Now, "Campaign Spending Campaign fines 'ghost PAC' running ads against Ige," August 3, 2018

[21] AiKea Hawaii, "About AiKea," accessed August 9, 2018

[22] Honolulu Civil Beat, "Carpenters Union Pumps $3 Million Into Hawaii’s Primary Race," August 2, 2018

[23] Hawaii Office of Elections, "2014 Primary Results," August 20, 2014

[quotedisclaimer-24] 24.0 ^24.1 ^24.2 ^24.3 Note: This text is quoted verbatim from the original source. Any inconsistencies are attributable to the original source.

[25] David Ige for Governor, "Issues," accessed March 19, 2018

[26] Clayton Hee for Governor, "Home," accessed March 19, 2018

[27] Ernest for Hawaii, "Issues," accessed March 19, 2018

[28] Hanabusa for Governor, "Priorities," accessed March 19, 2018

[29] 270towin.com, "Historical Presidential Elections," accessed August 2, 2017

[30] Daily Kos, "Daily Kos Elections' statewide election results by congressional and legislative districts," July 9, 2013

[31] Daily Kos, "Daily Kos Elections' 2016 presidential results for congressional and legislative districts," February 6, 2017

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