• Political season Opens
Political season Opens
This afternoon former Kaua‘i mayor Maryanne Kusaka, a Republican, is holding a fund-raiser where she is expected to declare her candidacy for Kaua‘i’s sole state Senate seat.
First-term state Sen. Gary Hooser, a Democrat, is now Kaua‘i’s senator in the Legislature.
This weekend Hawai‘i Sen. Daniel Inouye, one of the best known Democrats in the U.S. Senate, is on Kaua‘i offering strong support for Hooser, both for his current work in the Legislature, and for his probable run against Kusaka in the 2004 general election.
The Hooser vs. Kusaka 2004 race, if that is how events play out, is likely to be in the spotlight on Kaua‘i and across the state when next fall rolls around. Hooser represents the still-powerful Democratic Party in Hawai‘i, which controls the Legislature; Kusaka is a Republican closely aligned with the reform platform of Gov. Linda Lingle, another Republican, and is connected to Republican President George W. Bush. The election comes midway in Lingle’s four-year term as governor.
Hooser represents a new wave in the Democratic Party and is perceived as a moderate Democrat on Kaua‘i. He is a successful businessman and made his own way in the world outside of the political arena prior to being elected to the Kaua‘i County Council and more recently to the Legislature. In some ways his stands are similar to the traditional image of a Republican due to his business ties, while he has followed suit on votes in the state Senate, going along often with how Democratic leaders in Honolulu vote.
Kusaka has ties to the old-line Democrats of Kaua‘i from her days in the camp of the late Kaua‘i mayor Tony Kunimura. Some say she is a Republican of convenience in the world of Hawai‘i politics, though her many ties to the Republican Party in Hawai‘i of the 21st century show she is now solidly aligned with Republican Party stands on many issues. She is noted for pulling Kaua‘i out of a deep economic depression following Hurricane ‘Iniki as mayor, for being the right person at the right time to add cheer and a perennially smiling face at a time when Kaua‘i desperately need that. She comes from a background in education, and proved herself in that earlier career. She also has ties to the administration of Mayor Bryan Baptiste, who is also a Kaua‘i Republican.
The 2004 election is shaping up to be a watershed event in statewide Hawai‘i politics. Who comes out on top in the Hooser/Kusaka run, if that is what happens, will be a test of Lingle’s strength. If Kusaka should win it will show whether independent voters are giving continued support to Lingle’s reforms. If Hooser wins it will be a sign that the middle-of-the-road voters are swaying back to the long-time political policies of Hawai‘i Democrats.
The election should also show how significant the votes of newcomers to the Island are in Kaua‘i elections, and if the majority of these newly-registered voters lean towards Democratic politicians or Republican politicians.
Most of these new voters live on the South Shore or the North Shore, and many are from the West Coast, mostly California. The upheavals in California politics may be reflected here, too, as some of our new residents may have fled the problems of California for a new life on Kaua‘i.
The demographics of who will vote for Hooser and who will vote for Kusaka should say something too about the makeup of Kaua‘i’s population. Who will long-time residents vote for? Who will take the important Westside precincts? For that matter, who will Ni‘ihau voters choose.
This probable race has about 11 months to go. It is sure to be a hard-fought one, and one that might give us a look at the future of Kaua‘i politics for the rest of this decade.
