Aaron Johanson
Aaron Johanson (Democratic Party) was a member of the Hawaii House of Representatives, representing District 31. He assumed office on November 6, 2012. He left office on November 8, 2022.
Johanson (Democratic Party) won re-election to the Hawaii House of Representatives to represent District 31 outright in the Democratic primary on August 8, 2020, after the general election was canceled.
Johanson was first elected to the Hawaii House of Representatives in 2010. He represented District 32 from 2010 to 2012. He was redistricted into District 31 in 2012 and won re-election.
Johanson served as state House minority leader from 2013 to 2014 and House minority whip from 2011 until 2013.
Johanson switched parties from Republican to Democratic on December 29, 2014. He cited ideological narrowness within the party as the reason for the change.[1]
Biography
Aaron Johanson earned his B.A. in history from Yale University. His professional experience includes working as a legislative analyst for state Rep. Lynn Finnegan during the 2005 and 2010 legislative sessions, as deputy chief of staff for former Lieutenant Governor Duke Aiona, on the Legislative Federal Economic Stimulus Program Oversight Commission for Hawaii, deputy chief of staff at the U.S. Mint and director of Schedule C Appointments and deputy associate director of the White House personnel office.
Committee assignments
2021-2022
Johanson was assigned to the following committees:
2019-2020
Johanson was assigned to the following committees:
- Economic Development Committee
- Labor & Tourism Committee, Chair
- Lower and Higher Education Committee
2017 legislative session
At the beginning of the 2017 legislative session, this legislator served on the following committees:
| Hawaii committee assignments, 2017 |
|---|
| • Economic Development & Business |
| • Judiciary |
| • Labor & Public Employment, Chair |
2015 legislative session
At the beginning of the 2015 legislative session, Johanson served on the following committees:
| Hawaii committee assignments, 2015 |
|---|
| • Finance |
| • Labor & Public Employment |
| • Public Safety |
| • Transportation |
2013-2014
At the beginning of the 2013 legislative session, Johanson served on the following committees:
| Hawaii committee assignments, 2013 |
|---|
| • Labor & Public Employment |
| • Legislative Management |
2011-2012
In the 2011-2012 legislative session, Johanson served on these committees:
| Hawaii committee assignments, 2011 |
|---|
| • Education |
| • Higher Education |
| • Labor & Public Employment |
| • Public Safety & Military Affairs |
| • Transportation |
Issues
2014 State of the State response
In January 2014, Abercrombie gave his fourth State of the State address. Abercrombie stated that Hawaii was turning around the budget, which produced a general fund balance of $844 million in fiscal year 2013.[2] Johanson and other Republican leaders responded to Abercrombie's address and disputed the Governor's numbers, including the contention that a budget surplus existed or whether the state actually turned around economically. Johanson called the claim of a surplus a "misnomer" and pointed to Hawaii's unfunded liabilities ranking as one of the worst in the country. These liabilities included public pension funds such as the Employee Retirement System and the Hawaii Employer-Union Health Benefits Trust Fund.[2]
Sponsored legislation
The following table lists bills this person sponsored as a legislator, according to BillTrack50 and sorted by action history. Bills are sorted by the date of their last action. The following list may not be comprehensive. To see all bills this legislator sponsored, click on the legislator's name in the title of the table.
Elections
2022
Aaron Johanson did not file to run for re-election.
2020
See also: Hawaii House of Representatives elections, 2020
Democratic primary election
Democratic primary for Hawaii House of Representatives District 31
Incumbent Aaron Johanson won election outright in the Democratic primary for Hawaii House of Representatives District 31 on August 8, 2020.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ |  | Aaron Johanson | 100.0 | 2,940 |
| Total votes: 2,940 | |||
 = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey. | ||||
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2018
See also: Hawaii House of Representatives elections, 2018
General election
The general election was canceled. Incumbent Aaron Johanson won election in the general election for Hawaii House of Representatives District 31.
Democratic primary election
Democratic primary for Hawaii House of Representatives District 31
Incumbent Aaron Johanson advanced from the Democratic primary for Hawaii House of Representatives District 31 on August 11, 2018.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ | | Aaron Johanson | 100.0 | 2,613 |
| Total votes: 2,613 | |||
| = 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. | ||||
Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team. | ||||
2016
Elections for the Hawaii House of Representatives took place in 2016. The primary election took place on August 13, 2016, and the general election was held on November 8, 2016. The candidate filing deadline was June 7, 2016.
Incumbent Aaron Johanson defeated Eric H.L. Ching in the Hawaii House of Representatives District 31 general election.[3]
| Hawaii House of Representatives, District 31 General Election, 2016 | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Party | Candidate | Vote % | Votes | |
| Democratic |  Aaron Johanson Incumbent |
70.00% | 4,170 | |
| Republican | Eric H.L. Ching | 30.00% | 1,787 | |
| Total Votes | 5,957 | |||
| Source: State of Hawaii - Office of Elections | ||||
Incumbent Aaron Johanson ran unopposed in the Hawaii House of Representatives District 31 Democratic primary.[4][5]
| Hawaii House of Representatives, District 31 Democratic Primary, 2016 | ||
|---|---|---|
| Party | Candidate | |
| Democratic | Aaron Johanson Incumbent (unopposed) | |
Eric H.L. Ching ran unopposed in the Hawaii House of Representatives District 31 Republican primary.[4][5]
| Hawaii House of Representatives, District 31 Republican Primary, 2016 | ||
|---|---|---|
| Party | Candidate | |
| Republican | Eric H.L. Ching (unopposed) | |
This candidate ran in one of Ballotpedia's races to watch in 2016. Read more »
2014
Elections for the Hawaii House of Representatives took place in 2014. A primary election took place on August 9, 2014. The general election was held on November 4, 2014. The signature filing deadline for candidates wishing to run in this election was June 3, 2014. Lei Sharsh was unopposed in the Democratic primary, while incumbent Aaron Ling Johanson was unopposed in the Republican primary. Johanson defeated Sharsh in the general election.[6][7][8]
| Party | Candidate | Vote % | Votes | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Republican | Aaron Ling Johanson Incumbent |
71.8% | 3,698 | |
| Democratic | Lei Sharsh | 28.2% | 1,450 | |
| Total Votes | 5,148 | |||
2012
Johanson won re-election in the 2012 election for Hawaii House of Representatives District 31. Johanson ran unopposed in the August 11 Republican primary and defeated Lei Sharsh (D) in the general election, which took place on November 6, 2012.[9][10][11]
| Party | Candidate | Vote % | Votes | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Republican | Aaron Johanson Incumbent |
65.2% | 4,017 | |
| Democratic | Lei Sharsh | 34.8% | 2,143 | |
| Total Votes | 6,160 | |||
2010
Johanson had no opposition in the September 18 primary. He defeated Lei Sharsh in the general election on November 2, 2010.[12]
| Hawaii House of Representatives, District 32 (2010) | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Candidates | Votes | Percent | ||
| Aaron Johanson (D)
|
3,304 | 52.2% | ||
| Lei Sharsh (R) | 2,553 | 40.3% | ||
Campaign themes
2020
Ballotpedia survey responses
See also: Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection
Aaron Johanson did not complete Ballotpedia's 2020 Candidate Connection survey.
2014
Johanson's website highlighted the following campaign themes:[13]
Education
- Excerpt: "I firmly believe that a strong public education system is vital to Hawaii’s future. We need to be educating future generations of good citizens and equipping our children to compete academically and professionally anywhere in the world."
Economy
- Excerpt: "To strengthen Hawaii’s economy, I support continued economic diversification, lower taxes, and prioritizing the needs and concerns of all of Hawaii’s people, not merely favoring the economic interests of a few well-connected groups."
Government
- Excerpt: "I believe a results-oriented, accessible government is the key to good government. Diverse perspectives ensure greater dialogue on the issues and a more transparent process for the people to decide if a law is in their best interest."
Transportation
- Excerpt: "We must find practical ways to reduce traffic congestion and dangerous traffic conditions such as speeding."
Seniors & Veterans
- Excerpt: "Our seniors and veterans are directly responsible for the quality of life that we enjoy today. We should honor them by ensuring that they are supported when they most need our help."
Campaign finance summary
Note: The finance data shown here comes from the disclosures required of candidates and parties. Depending on the election or state, this may represent only a portion of all the funds spent on their behalf. Satellite spending groups may or may not have expended funds related to the candidate or politician on whose page you are reading this disclaimer. Campaign finance data from elections may be incomplete. For elections to federal offices, complete data can be found at the FEC website. Click here for more on federal campaign finance law and here for more on state campaign finance law.
Scorecards
A scorecard evaluates a legislator’s voting record. Its purpose is to inform voters about the legislator’s political positions. Because scorecards have varying purposes and methodologies, each report should be considered on its own merits. For example, an advocacy group’s scorecard may assess a legislator’s voting record on one issue while a state newspaper’s scorecard may evaluate the voting record in its entirety.
Ballotpedia is in the process of developing an encyclopedic list of published scorecards. Some states have a limited number of available scorecards or scorecards produced only by select groups. It is Ballotpedia’s goal to incorporate all available scorecards regardless of ideology or number.
Click here for an overview of legislative scorecards in all 50 states. To contribute to the list of Hawaii scorecards, email suggestions to [email protected].
2022
In 2022, the Hawaii State Legislature was in session from January 19 to May 5.
2021
| To view all the scorecards we found for this legislator in 2021, click [show]. |
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In 2021, the Hawaii State Legislature was in session from January 20 to April 29.
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2020
| To view all the scorecards we found for this legislator in 2020, click [show]. |
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In 2020, the Hawaii State Legislature was in session from January 15 to July 10.
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2019
| To view all the scorecards we found for this legislator in 2019, click [show]. |
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In 2019, the Hawaii State Legislature was in session from January 16 through May 2.
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2018
| To view all the scorecards we found for this legislator in 2018, click [show]. |
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In 2018, the Hawaii State Legislature was in session from January 17 through May 3.
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2017
| To view all the scorecards we found for this legislator in 2017, click [show]. |
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In 2017, the Hawaii State Legislature was in session from January 18 through May 4. The Legislature held a special session from July 12 from July 20. The legislature held its first special session from August 28 to September 1. The legislature held its second special session from September 25 to September 26. The legislature held its third special session on November 14.
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2016
| To view all the scorecards we found for this legislator in 2016, click [show]. |
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In 2016, the Hawaii State Legislature was in session from January 20 through May 5. The Legislature held a special session from July 12 from July 20.
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2015
| To view all the scorecards we found for this legislator in 2015, click [show]. |
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In 2015, the Hawaii State Legislature was in session from January 21 through May 7.
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2014
| To view all the scorecards we found for this legislator in 2014, click [show]. |
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In 2014, the Hawaii State Legislature was in session from January 15 through May 2.
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2013
| To view all the scorecards we found for this legislator in 2013, click [show]. |
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In 2013, the Hawaii State Legislature was in session from January 16 to May 3.
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See also
2020 Elections
External links
Footnotes
- ↑ hawaiinewsnow.com, "Republican representative joins Democratic party," December 29, 2014
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 WatchDog.org, "Minority leaders dispute governor’s claims that Hawaii is on solid financial ground," January 23, 2014
- ↑ State of Hawaii, "General Election 2016 - State of Hawaii – Statewide November 8, 2016," accessed November 23, 2016
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 State of Hawaii, "2016 Candidate Report," accessed June 10, 2016
- ↑ 5.0 5.1 Hawaii.gov, "Primary Election results," accessed September 12, 2016
- ↑ Hawaii Secretary of State, "Official primary candidate list," accessed June 6, 2014
- ↑ Hawaii Secretary of State, "Official primary election results," accessed August 25, 2014
- ↑ Hawaii Secretary of State, "Official general election results," accessed November 12, 2014
- ↑ civilbeat.com, " Unofficial 2012 Primary election candidate list," accessed March 24, 2014
- ↑ Hawaii Secretary of State, "Official 2012 Primary election results," accessed March 24, 2014
- ↑ Hawaii Secretary of State, "Official 2012 General election results," accessed March 24, 2014
- ↑ Hawaii Secretary of State, "Official 2010 General election results," accessed December 13, 2013
- ↑ votejohanson.com, "Issues," accessed October 7, 2014
- ↑ Paychecks Hawaii, "PAYCHECKS HAWAII Ratings of the 2013 Hawaii State Legislature," accessed July 11, 2017
- ↑ Paychecks Hawaii, "PAYCHECKS HAWAII Ratings of the 2013 Hawaii State Legislature," accessed July 11, 2017
| Political offices | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by - |
Hawaii House of Representatives District 31 2012-2022 |
Succeeded by Linda Ichiyama (D) |
| Preceded by - |
Hawaii House of Representatives District 32 2010-2012 |
Succeeded by - |
