Leaders of Hawaiʻi’s Democratic Party had breakfast together over the weekend to unite the party after Saturday’s hard-fought primary election.
Most incumbents emerged victorious over their rivals, giving the impression that voters endorse the status quo. But some leaders at the party’s traditional post-election gathering on Sunday also acknowledged they face challenges keeping the support of voters deeply dissatisfied with the cost of living and housing.
“No Democratic candidate anywhere should take a general election for granted,” U.S. Rep. Ed Case, who won his primary, said in a speech. “The voters today are angry at government in general, and they are — they want us to address the concerns that they have from the cost of living to general functioning of government.”
The morning meal brought primary winners and losers to the same Honolulu hotel ballroom for a buffet spread. The gathering aims to unify Hawaiʻi’s dominant political party around its chosen candidates — and to heal wounds opened during the campaign.
Case thanked and complimented the man he defeated, state Sen. Jarrett Keohokalole, for running a strong race. Keohokalole, 43, mounted an insurgent campaign, saying voters wanted a leader with the energy to address inflation, the Iran war and threats to democracy.
Case, 73, secured nearly 60% of the vote, but he said he would take what he heard back to Washington.
Kauaʻi Mayor Derek Kawakami, who won the party’s nomination to be lieutenant governor, wasn’t feeling well and missed the event.
He’ll join Gov. Josh Green on the ballot in the general election. Green faced minimal competition and won his primary with nearly 90% of the vote.
“Derek and I complement each other very well. He's a very local guy. I'm a guy that had come from the mainland about 30 years ago, and you know I'm a physician. He's a mayor,” Green said in an interview. “There's a lot that balances us.”
Green said voters are upset at the Trump administration but back Hawaiʻi’s congressional delegation and the new Green-Kawakami ticket.
“We are putting up a fight against those forces, and so I think that that's why Hawaiʻi has been, you know, very generous in supporting us,” Green said.
The second-place finisher in the lieutenant governor’s race, Della Au Belatti, said she was proud of the campaign she ran.
“We gave voters a choice,” she said.
She said Democrats have a lot of work to do, as exemplified by the low voter turnout of 33%.
“The public is disenchanted,” Belatti said, adding non-voters used their absence at the polls to tell elected leaders to do better.
“This party needs to really take a look at itself and what it's doing, and respond to the calls for better government,” Belatti said.
The first thing on the agenda should be to prohibit campaign donations from government contractors and their immediate family members, she said.
The primary campaign took place as a corruption scandal centered around alleged bribes from a government contractor unfolded within the party.
Lt. Gov. Sylvia Luke, who was indicted for bribery, pleaded not guilty but took a leave of absence and didn’t run for reelection. Ryan Yamane, a former state representative and former director of the Department of Human Services under Green, was also indicted and has pleaded not guilty.
Green said he has done everything possible to make sure everyone “is upright.”
“My team has a zero-tolerance policy for any bad behavior, and when we have heard or seen anyone behave badly, they're gone,” Green said.
Breakfast attendees wrapped up by holding hands and singing “Hawaiʻi Aloha.” Brickwood Galuteria, the top vote-getter in the Office of Hawaiian Affairs trustee contest, called on everyone to sing loud as “one united family.”
The Democrats’ next challenge is whether the unified party can win the public’s support in the Nov. 3 general election.
