Notable Hawaii races, 2016
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| Notable Hawaii Races | |
|---|---|
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| Primary | August 13, 2016 |
| General | November 8, 2016 |
| 2016 Notable Races | |
|---|---|
| Choose a state below: | |
Ballotpedia identified five notable Hawaii state legislative races in 2016.
Overview
- Main articles: Hawaii House of Representatives elections, 2016 and Hawaii State Senate elections, 2016
All 51 state House seats and 14 of the 25 state Senate seats were up for election in 2016.
| Partisan breakdown of the Hawaii Legislature | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Party | Republicans | Democrats | |
| Hawaii House | 7 seats | 44 seats | |
| Hawaii Senate | 1 seat | 24 seats | |
Democrats had held a state government trifecta since 2011, meaning they controlled the governorship and both chambers of the state legislature. They remained in total control of the state government following the November election. Gov. David Ige (D) was not up for election in 2016, and Republicans would have had to gain 19 seats to win a majority in the House and 12 seats to win a majority in the Senate.
Republicans targeted Democratic incumbents in two competitive legislative districts—House District 31 and Senate District 25—in 2016.[1][2] The vulnerable Democratic incumbent in House District 22 faced two challengers from his own party, as well as a general election opponent.[1][2] The race in House District 43 featured a rerun of the 2014 Democratic primary, and a general election rematch.[1][2][3][4] Three Democratic challengers competed to take on the Senate's sole Republican in Senate District 9.[1][2]
What makes a race notable?
Ballotpedia uses these criteria to identify notable races:
- Incumbents facing more conservative or liberal challengers
- Rematches between candidates
- Races that receive considerable media attention
- Races that could significantly affect the state's partisan balance
- Competitive races involving party leaders
- Open, competitive races with Republican and Democratic primaries
- Races that capture money and attention from outside groups, including key endorsements
Know of an interesting race we should include here? Email us!
Notable primary elections
House District 22 - Democratic primary
| Two Democratic candidates challenged the vulnerable Democratic incumbent. |
Rep. Tom Brower (D) faced a primary challenge in House District 22 in 2016. Brower made headlines in 2013 for using a sledgehammer to destroy shopping carts used by homeless people.[5] He returned to the news in 2015 following an altercation with two teenage boys at a Honolulu homeless encampment.[6] Dennis Miller and Nicola Perez-Garreaud unsuccessfully challenged him for the Democratic nomination.[1] Brower faced off against Kathryn Henski, who ran unopposed in the Republican primary.[1]
| Hawaii House of Representatives, District 22 Democratic Primary, 2016 | ||
|---|---|---|
| Party | Candidate | |
| Democratic |  Tom Brower Incumbent | |
| Democratic | Dennis Miller | |
| Democratic | Nicola Perez-Garreaud | |
Notable general elections
House District 31 - General election
| A Republican candidate challenged the Democratic incumbent in a competitive district. |
Republican candidate Eric Ching was defeated by Rep. Aaron Johanson (D) in House District 31, one of the few competitive districts in the state.[1][2] Johanson, who was first elected to the chamber as a Republican in 2010, served as GOP minority whip and GOP minority leader before switching parties in 2014.[7][8] Johanson and Ching both ran unopposed in their respective primaries.[1]
House District 43 - General election
| A Democratic candidate competed to challenge the Republican incumbent to a rematch. |
Former Rep. Karen Awana (D) competed for a chance at a rematch with Rep. Andria Tupola in House District 43.[1][3] Awana, who was elected as a Republican in 2006 but switched parties the following year, received multiple fines for campaign finance violations during her tenure in the House.[9][10] She lost the District 43 seat to Tupola by 733 votes in 2014.[3] Awana was defeated in the 2016 Democratic primary by Stacelynn K.M. Eli. Tupola ran unopposed in the Republican primary.[1][4] Tupola defeated Eli in the 2016 general election.
Senate District 9 - General election
| Three Democratic competed to face the sole Republican incumbent in the Senate. |
Three Democratic challengers registered to run against Sen. Sam Slom (R), the only Republican member of the Senate.[1] Former Honolulu City Councilman and former congressional candidate Stanley Chang came out on top in the Democratic primary, defeating Michael Bennett and Richard Kim.[1][2] Slom ran unopposed in the Republican primary.[1] Chang defeated Slom in the 2016 general election.
Senate District 25 - General election
| Two Republican candidates competed to face the Democratic incumbent in a competitive district.' |
Sen. Laura Thielen (D) defeated Robert Nagamine (R) in competitive Senate District 25.[1][2] Thielen defeated then-Sen. Fred Hemmings (R) to claim the seat for the Democratic Party in 2012.[11] Robert Nagamine defeated Heather Dozier in the GOP primary.[1] Thielen ran unopposed in the Democratic primary.[1]
Freshman legislators
The following is a list of challengers who won election on November 8.
- Cedric Asuega Gates (Democratic), .Hawaii House of Representatives, District 44
- Daniel Holt (Democratic), .Hawaii House of Representatives, District 29
- Karl Rhoads (Democratic), .Hawaii State Senate, District 13
- Nadine Nakamura (Democratic), .Hawaii House of Representatives, District 14
- Sean Quinlan (Democratic), .Hawaii House of Representatives, District 47
- Stanley Chang (Democratic), .Hawaii State Senate, District 9
Defeated incumbents
The following is a list of incumbents who were defeated on November 8.
- Feki Pouha (Republican), .Hawaii House of Representatives, District 47
- Samuel Slom (Republican), .Hawaii State Senate, District 9
See also
- Hawaii House of Representatives
- Hawaii State Senate
- Hawaii State Legislature
- State legislative elections, 2016
External links
Footnotes
- ↑ 1.00 1.01 1.02 1.03 1.04 1.05 1.06 1.07 1.08 1.09 1.10 1.11 1.12 1.13 1.14 1.15 Hawaii Office of Elections, "Federal/State/County 2016 Candidates," June 28, 2016
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 2.3 2.4 2.5 2.6 Daily Kos, "Hawaii State Legislative Analysis (Not Too Much to See)," June 10, 2016
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 Hawaii Office of Elections, "General Election - State of Hawaii - Statewide," November 18, 2014
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 Hawaii Office of Elections, "Primary Election 2014 - State of Hawaii - Statewide," August 20, 2014
- ↑ The Huffington Post, "Hawaii Rep. Tom Brower Takes a Sledgehammer (Literally) to Homelessness Problem," November 19, 2013
- ↑ Hawaii News Now, "State Rep. Tom Brower to Press Charges against Homeless Teens Accused of Assaulting Him in Kakaako," July 24, 2015
- ↑ The Hawaii Independent, "General Election 2010: And the Winners Are..." November 3, 2010
- ↑ Hawaii News Now, "Republican Representative Joins Democratic Party," December 30, 2014
- ↑ Hawaii House Blog, "Rep. Karen Awana Joins the House Majority," December 19, 2007
- ↑ Hawaii Reporter, "Campaign Spending Commission Cracks Down on Hawaii Representative's Illegal Campaign Practices," October 9, 2013
- ↑ Hawaii Office of Elections, "Hawaii General 2012 - State of Hawaii - Statewide," November 20, 2012
