It’s been three weeks since State Rep. Elle Cochran announced that she would be leaving the Democratic party to join the Hawaiʻi GOP.
Cochran represents West Maui, including Lahaina, Olowalu and Kapalua. Her district was hit by the recent Kona low storms, but she sai that thanks to infrastructure improvements after the 2023 wildfires, residents in the area didn’t lose power or cell service.
Cochran joined HPR to speak about her dissatisfaction with the Hawaiʻi Democratic party and why she decided to switch sides.
“I just felt very pushed out, like the door has been slammed in my face,” Cochran said.
As her disillusionment with the Democratic party grew, her Republican colleagues were quick to welcome her into the fold, Cochran recalled.
“I was tending to vote more in line with the Republican minority caucus anyways. And they were always joking, like, you know, you can always come into our caucus,” she said.
“And I'm just, just agree to disagree where you can but, but work with common ground. And I felt like I was gaining more common ground with the Hawaiian Republicans.”
Cochran clarified that aligning herself with the Trump administration was not a motivation for her decision to switch parties.
“There is a clear difference between who we are as the Hawaiian Republican Party versus the federal level party,” she said, reaffirming her focus on local politics.
“In relation to Trump, we don't even talk about that person. You know, it's not brought up in our meetings. We're talking about the issues of Hawaiʻi and our people in the districts that we represent, and that's what we focus on.”
At a time when an estimated 20,000 participants statewide took to the streets in the March 28 "No Dictators" march to oppose the policies of the Trump administration, Cochran’s support for the Republican party has prompted backlash from some constituents.
“There have been the angry naysayers. ‘How dare you? I voted you as a Democrat. Now you're one of those Republicans,’ and all I can say is that I'm still that person, the person you know is Elle Cochran. What you see is what you get,” Cochran responded.
“Deep down in my heart, I really wish there weren't parties. I think it should be about who you are, what you bring.”
Last year, Cochran missed 51 out of the 60 days of the legislative session in Honolulu. She told HPR that she was needed more in her district to help fire survivors.
“I was in my hometown that was devastated by fire. And I, too, am a fire survivor. I did drive through that mess and catastrophe myself, and we're all still dealing with trauma and PTSD and everything. So trying to be there for my town and the people, and that's where I felt I was needed the most and wanted the most.”
When asked if she would be running in the upcoming elections, Cochran responded, “I’m gonna give it a shot and see where it goes.”
Five candidates have already pulled papers to run against her. The filing deadline is June 2.
This story aired on The Conversation on April 6, 2026. The Conversation airs weekdays at 11 a.m. Jinwook Lee adapted this story for the web.
