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Isle Democrats
get early start
on campaign

Planning for next year's
election is speeded up
due to Republican gains

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By Richard Borreca
Star-Bulletin

Democratic Party leaders, worried about the advances made by Republicans in the 2000 elections, have called for an early start to the usual election-year coordinated campaign.

An invitation-only meeting Jan. 10 at First Hawaiian Bank kicked off the 2002 political season for Hawaii's Democrats.

Walter Heen, party chairman, said after meeting with Jennifer Goto Sabas, U.S. Sen. Dan Inouye's chief of staff, and Linda Takayama, a private attorney who served as the Democratic coordinated campaign chairwoman in 1996 and worked for former U.S. Senate Sergeant-at-Arms Henry Giugni, that the three decided to speed up planning for next year's election.

By way of comparison, the Democrats' coordinated campaign is usually kicked off between the primary and general races of an election year.

"The situation being as it is, we decided to move ahead right now," Heen said.

The meeting was chaired by Inouye. Heen said bringing Inouye into the planning early was needed to firm up support.

"He is the senior senator. When he asks people to do something, they can't say no," Heen said.

Besides Inouye, U.S. Rep. Neil Abercrombie attended, along with former Gov. John Waihee and his former communications director, Charles Freedman, and Robbie Alm, former director of the Commerce and Consumer Affairs Department.

Also attending were legislators and representatives of the two major possible Democratic candidates for governor, Lt. Gov. Mazie Hirono and Honolulu Mayor Jeremy Harris.

They set up committees for fund raising, reapportionment, candidate recruitment and grass-roots networking, Heen said.

Mayor candidates or supporters were also asked to pledge $10,000 each to start the campaign, according to another politician who attended but asked not to be identified.

The Republicans' likely candidate for governor, GOP Chairwoman Linda Lingle, said the early organization by the Democrats is a sign that the GOP is a viable political force.

"If the Democrats are meeting a year early, we must really be doing something right," Lingle said.

The Republicans already have two major fund-raisers and one grass-roots event set for the next several weeks.

Tomorrow, the 19 House Republicans will be feted by a political action committee, GOP House PAC, at the Dole Ballroom. Tickets are $25. The PAC is set up to raise money to elect more House Republicans, Lingle said.

Then on Feb. 22, the GOP plans the major fund-raiser of the year, the Lincoln Day Dinner. Lingle says she plans to sell out the Sheraton-Waikiki Ballroom.

And finally, the GOP holds its caucus meeting in February, where Lingle plans to expand the number of voters who have joined the party. She said 3,000 new supporters already have joined since she took over as chairwoman two years ago.