Gov. Josh Green has appointed Joe Gedeon to succeed the late Rep. Gene Ward to serve House District 18, which encompasses Portlock, Hawaiʻi Kai and Kalama Valley in East Oʻahu.
Ward officially retired from the Hawaiʻi House of Representatives at the end of March and then died a few days later on April 4. He was 82.
Ward, a Republican, was the longest-serving member of the House and had been in public service for more than three decades.
Green chose Gedeon from among three names submitted by the Hawaiʻi Republican Party.
“Gene was a family friend, a mentor and a lifelong example of integrity and public service. His legacy in Hawaiʻi Kai is profound and I hope to carry forward the values he championed: community, accountability and unwavering commitment to the people he served," Gedeon said in a statement.
Gedeon will serve the remainder of Ward's term until the 2026 election.
Gedeon co-founded the marketing and advertising companies JPG Hawaii and JPG Media, according to the governor's press release. He currently sits on the boards of the American Advertising Federation of Hawaiʻi and the Central YMCA.
Born and raised in Hawaiʻi Kai, he graduated from Kaiser High School and Kapiʻolani Community College, according to the release, as well as from the now-closed, for-profit ITT Technical Institute in San Diego.
