Schatz, Case and Tokuda Prevail in Hawaiian Primaries
Lt. Gov. Josh Green Also Among Top Vote Getters

August 15, 2022 by Dan McCue
Schatz, Case and Tokuda Prevail in Hawaiian Primaries
Sen. Brian Schatz via Twitter.

HONOLULU, Hawaii — Blue Dog Democrat Rep. Ed Case, incumbent Democratic Sen. Brian Schatz, and Hawaii’s current Democratic Lt. Gov. Josh Green won their respective primary contests on Saturday.

The state’s top vote getter on Saturday was Schatz, who was serving as lieutenant governor when he was appointed to serve out the rest of Sen. Daniel Inouye’s term after Inouye’s death in 2012.

At the time, the appointment made Schatz the youngest U.S. senator in the 112th Congress. Since then he’s won a special election to complete the remainder of Inouye’s term, and was reelected in 2016 to a full six-year term of his own.

On Saturday night, 227,599 voters sent a loud and clear message that they like the job he’s doing.

Schatz’s opponent in the Democratic primary was 72-year-old Steve Tataii, a conflict resolution consultant, who garnered just 15,655 votes.

Schatz will now face longtime state Rep. Bob McDermott in the general election.

McDermott, a Republican, has maintained that the primary reason he’s running is he wants to complete the shutdown of the military’s polluting Red Hill Bulk Fuel Storage Facility in Honolulu.

On Saturday, he bested a field of five candidates, receiving 25,557, followed by Timothy Dalhouse with 17,066, Wallyn Christian with 9,414, Seven Bond with 6,363 and Asia LaVonne with 6,134.

In the Governor’s Race

Green, who was seeking the Democratic nod for governor, handily defeated former Hawaiian first lady Vicky Cayetano and Kaiali’i Kahele, who decided to seek the governor’s office instead of a second term in the U.S. House.

When all was said and done, Green received 157,476 votes, while Cayetano received 52,237 and Kahele, 37,540.

Democratic gubernatorial candidate Josh Green speaks at his campaign headquarters inside the Modern Hotel on Saturday, Aug. 13, 2022, in Honolulu. (Jamm Aquino/Honolulu Star-Advertiser via AP)

Four other candidates received the remaining 1.22% of the vote.

Green will face former two-term Republican Lt. Gov. Duke Aiona, who received 37,406 votes in the GOP gubernatorial primary, coming in well ahead of mixed martial arts championship fighter B.J. Penn, who received 19,667.

Eight other candidates participating in the Republican primary received a combined 24.32% of the vote.

Heading into November, Green and Aiona will tangle primarily over Hawaii’s high housing costs, which are considered the state’s top issue. The median price of a single-family home in the state now stands at about $1 million.

Green has said he will address the issue by signing an executive order that would eliminate red tape and streamline construction approvals and enforce existing laws to shut down illegal vacation rentals.

Aiona wants to eliminate the state’s Land Use Commission, which he blamed for slowing housing development.

House Races

The state’s other big vote getter, as already mentioned, was Rep. Ed Case in Hawaii’s 1st Congressional District.

He received a total 100,219 votes, crushing his progressive challenger, Sergio Alcubilla, who received 20,242.

Alcubilla, who worked as a lawyer for the Legal Aid Society, ran against Case largely based on the incumbent’s hesitancy to embrace President Joe Biden’s Build Back Better plan. 

But any traction that argument might have had fizzled on Friday when the House voted to pass the slimmed down version of the plan, now known as the Inflation Reduction Act.

Then State Senator Jill Tokuda with U.S. Sen. Mazie Hirono, D-Hawaii, in 2014.

As for the Republican contest in the 1st Congressional District, Conrad Kress garnered 13,363 votes while Arturo Reyes got 7,419 and Patrick Largey, 5,745.

There were also two nonpartisan candidates running. Calvin Griffin received 265, or 9.2% of the votes, while Steven Abkin garnered 227 or 7.9% of the votes.

Over in Hawaii’s 2nd Congressional District, businesswoman and former State Sen. Jill Tokuda bested challenger Patrick Pihana Branco. In terms of votes, Tokuda received 62,056 compared to Branco’s 26,965.

Four other Democratic candidates combined for 17.23% of the votes.

Among Republicans, Joe Akana received 28,030 while his challenger, Joseph Webster, received 5,382.

Michelle Tippens, the only Libertarian on the ballot, received 341 votes.

Dan can be reached at [email protected] and at https://twitter.com/DanMcCue.

A+
a-
  • Brian Schatz
  • Ed Case
  • Hawaii
  • Josh Green
  • In The News

    Health

    Voting

    2022 Elections

    April 4, 2023
    by Dan McCue
    Report: Failure to Embrace Center Led to Santos Victory

    WASHINGTON — A new analysis of the 2022 electoral race that elevated admitted Republican fabricator George Santos to Congress suggests... Read More

    WASHINGTON — A new analysis of the 2022 electoral race that elevated admitted Republican fabricator George Santos to Congress suggests local Democratic leaders made a series of critical blunders heading into the contest, not the least of which was not running a more centrist candidate against... Read More

    Democrat Katie Hobbs Takes Office as Arizona Governor

    PHOENIX (AP) — Katie Hobbs took the oath of office Monday to become Arizona’s 24th governor and the first Democrat... Read More

    PHOENIX (AP) — Katie Hobbs took the oath of office Monday to become Arizona’s 24th governor and the first Democrat to hold the office since 2009. Hobbs was sworn in during a private ceremony at the state Capitol as she formally took over from Republican Doug... Read More

    Democrat Wins Arizona Attorney General Race After Recount

    PHOENIX (AP) — A recount of votes has confirmed Democrat Kris Mayes narrowly defeated Republican Abraham Hamadeh in the Arizona... Read More

    PHOENIX (AP) — A recount of votes has confirmed Democrat Kris Mayes narrowly defeated Republican Abraham Hamadeh in the Arizona attorney general’s race, one of the closest elections in state history. The highly anticipated results announced Thursday in Maricopa County Superior Court are among the last... Read More

    December 22, 2022
    by Dan McCue
    McClellan Wins Democratic Nomination in Virginia’s 4th CD

    RICHMOND, Va. — Virginia state Sen. Jennifer McClellan overwhelmingly won the Democratic nomination to succeed the late A. Donald McEachin... Read More

    RICHMOND, Va. — Virginia state Sen. Jennifer McClellan overwhelmingly won the Democratic nomination to succeed the late A. Donald McEachin in Congress, garnering 84.81% of the vote, party officials announced early Thursday morning. McClellan far outdistanced her chief rival for the party’s nod, Joseph Morrissey, receiving... Read More

    December 21, 2022
    by Dan McCue
    It’s All Over but the Vote Counting in ‘Firehouse’ Primary in Va.

    RICHMOND, Va. — More than 26,400 people turned out to vote in a “firehouse” Democratic primary held in Virginia's 4th... Read More

    RICHMOND, Va. — More than 26,400 people turned out to vote in a “firehouse” Democratic primary held in Virginia's 4th Congressional District on Tuesday — so many that the party had to reportedly print as many as 10,000 additional ballots to keep up with demand. "The... Read More

    Democratic Sen. Warnock Wins Georgia Runoff Against Walker

    ATLANTA (AP) — Democratic Sen. Raphael Warnock defeated Republican challenger Herschel Walker in a Georgia runoff election Tuesday, ensuring Democrats... Read More

    ATLANTA (AP) — Democratic Sen. Raphael Warnock defeated Republican challenger Herschel Walker in a Georgia runoff election Tuesday, ensuring Democrats an outright majority in the Senate for the rest of President Joe Biden's current term and capping an underwhelming midterm cycle for the GOP in the... Read More

    News From The Well
    scroll top