Cayetano, Lingle
had no advantage
on home turf

Each of them lost their home precincts
by more than 200 votes, but the incumbent
won with his appeal in blue-collar areas

By Richard Borreca
Star-Bulletin

Home base didn't mean much for Gov. Ben Cayetano and Maui Mayor Linda Lingle in this year's race for governor.

According to a breakdown of the election returns by precinct, Lingle lost her home precinct on Maui by a vote of 523 to 321.

Cayetano fared no better as he lost his precinct to Lingle, 748 to 543.

The governor, who won re-election by slightly more than 5,000 votes, capitalized on his strengths in traditional Democratic blue-collar neighborhoods.

The exception, however, was in Big Island areas, which had always voted Democratic but this time turned to Lingle.

Her campaign, stressing promises to fix the state's economy, appeared to play well in the depressed areas of the Big Island, including Hilo.

For instance, at Hilo Union School, Cayetano lost to Lingle by 100 votes. In that same precinct other Democrats, such as former Mayor Lorraine Inouye and state Rep. Dwight Takamine, were winning easily.

But up the Hamakua Coast, Cayetano was winning. In the end, however, Cayetano lost the Big Island to Republican Lingle.

That loss was counterbalanced by a big victory on Kauai, another strong union and strong Democratic area.

On her home territory of Maui County, where she had not lost a political race since first running in 1980, Lingle was able to squeeze out a narrow victory.

Moving to Oahu, Lingle was strong in the traditionally Republican area of Hawaii Kai. For instance, in the Kamiloiki precinct she won 1,280 to 800. But her strength was not universal. In other areas such as Aina Haina, Lingle and Cayetano battled to a virtual dead heat.

Cayetano won the Democratic area of Palolo, and Lingle won in the usually Republican Waikiki precincts.

But the big show of support for Cayetano was in the areas of Papakolea, Lanakila, Kalihi and Kapalama. In some precincts Cayetano trounced Lingle, with margins such as 333 to 66.

He also opened up huge margins in Waipahu precincts.

The pair, however, appeared to battle to a tie on Oahu's Central plain area of Mililani.

Cayetano also appeared to have the edge along the Leeward Coast areas.

The Windward side of Oahu was a source of votes for Lingle. Many of the Kaneohe precincts have been Republican for decades, and the Kailua precincts were as lopsidedly in favor of Lingle as Kalihi was for Cayetano.

The precinct breakdown appears to indicate that Cayetano was able to hold much of his Japanese-American and Filipino-American support, although Lingle was targeting both groups.

Native Hawaiian voters appear to have favored Cayetano slightly, although early public opinion polls had shown Lingle picking up a majority of the vote.

Finally, Lingle held her traditional GOP vote in Caucasian areas, but didn't appear able to extend it in significant enough numbers to contain Cayetano's Democratic strongholds.