Lieutenant gov’s
race heats up

Both parties hope to assemble
a mix that will win in November

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By Crystal Kua
ckua@starbulletin.com

The first runner-up in a beauty pageant, the governor-in-training office.

The lieutenant governor gets no respect -- the Rodney Dangerfield of Hawaii politics.So why are so many people eyeballing a run for the second highest office in the state government?

"It isn't a flashy position, it's true, but it's a very important one," said Democratic candidate Donna Ikeda, a member of the Board of Education and a former state senator.

With this year's election, Democrats and Republicans say the formula of mixing the right lieutenant governor candidate with the right gubernatorial candidate could translate into a winning ticket this fall.

"I think a strong lieutenant governor's candidate is necessary any time there's going to be a close race," said state Sen. Matt Matsunaga, 43, a Democrat who is expected to formally announce his candidacy for the state's No. 2 job.

Ikeda, Matsunaga, state Sen. Ron Menor, City Councilman Jon Yoshimura and Office of Hawaiian Affairs trustee Clayton Hee are among those seeking the office on the Democratic ticket. On the Republican side former judge James "Duke" Aiona, former state Rep. Cam Cavasso and former television newsman Dalton Tanonaka are among the high profile names.

The deadline for candidates to file nomination papers is July 23.

The lieutenant governor's race is especially important for Democrats who want to maintain their 40-year stronghold on the governor's seat yet have no clear front-runner.

Democrats now running for governor include current Lt. Gov. Mazie Hirono, state Rep. Ed Case and businessman D.G. "Andy" Anderson.

"The sense I get right now is that none of them really fulfill all of the people's wishes, all of what the people are looking for," said Ikeda, 62.

"When the general election rolls around, the Democratic ticket will be more defined by both of the candidates who are going to be on the ticket rather than just the gubernatorial candidate," said Menor, 46.

"I really believe it's going to require more of a team effort on the part of the ticket to prevail in November than perhaps in previous years."

With a strong candidate in Lingle, the GOP is looking for a lieutenant governor who can enhance the ticket without detracting from it.

"I see that role as supporting her leadership, complementing her candidacy and undergirding her candidacy," said Cavasso, 51.

Ethnicity and gender

Clayton Hee, who is of Hawaiian and Chinese descent, says he is the best candidate for the Democrats because he will be able to pull native Hawaiian votes away from Lingle, who is polling as a favorite with that block of voters.

Hee and the other candidates believe that attracting different ethnic voting blocks isn't the most important factor in getting votes, but it doesn't hurt.

"Little things are going to count for a lot including endorsements, ethnicity and financing. It will be very critical, perhaps more so than any other race since statehood," Hee said.

Yoshimura disagrees with Hee's contention that voters automatically connect with a candidate that looks like them. "Just because someone is of a certain ethnic group doesn't mean that that person will necessarily know more or care more about his or her ethnic group."

Ikeda said she's been told that a Hirono-and-Ikeda ticket with two Japanese-American women might not be the best combination for Democrats wanting to attract a broad spectrum of voters, an assumption she dismisses. "If you look beyond the gender issue, that isn't a hard sell."

Republicans also have to counter the stereotype that the party lacks diversity.

Cavasso stresses his kamaaina roots that go back generations. "I believe that that will help, give that extra oomph as well."

Tanonaka, 48, a Hawaii native who had been a CNN anchor based in Hong Kong, said that despite his international experiences, he continues to have "local grounding," which he defines as "understanding the issues that are important to those who love and live in Hawaii. It's nothing about being born here or about race."

Aiona who rattles off his ethnic background that includes Hawaiian, Chinese and Portuguese, points to the Republican platform as one that espouses the concerns of Hawaii's people.

"I don't see how it's not local or it's not conducive to this community. I think we all share the same concerns." said Aiona, 47.

Distractions

When Stan Koki was the Republican lieutenant governor candidate to run with Lingle in 1998 against Gov. Ben Cayetano and Hirono, some speculated whether he might have been too conservative for the ticket.

Cavasso, who describes himself as a pro-family candidate, said Koki was an asset to the team and wasn't the reason Lingle lost the close contest.

Cavasso said he believes that he, Tanonaka and Aiona are all good running mates for Lingle.

But could the problems of lieutenant governor candidates bring down the overall ticket?

Matsunaga said a lieutenant governor that is dogged by negative publicity or negative feelings, "can certainly detract from the important issues of the campaign."

Yoshimura, who acknowledges his woes stemming from him leaving the scene of a 1999 accident in which he hit a parked, unoccupied car, said voters will look to a candidate's record.

Menor said he can't speak to other candidates, but he believes a lieutenant governor should have certain qualities.

"So if a candidate cannot convince voters that he or she possesses those qualities then I think it's going to be difficult for that person to prevail in the primary election in September."

Do-nothing office?

With all the jokes about the lieutenant governor's office, Rick Castberg, University of Hawaii at Hilo political science professor, said the office is getting a "bum rap" and that he believes the position is an important one.

"By and large the lieutenant governor is there for when the governor is disabled, out of town and or dies," University of Hawaii at Hilo political science professor Rick Castberg. "You've got to have someone to jump right in." The past three Democratic governors -- Cayetano, John Waihee and George Ariyoshi -- were all former lieutenant governors who didn't challenge their bosses at the polls while two other lieutenant governors, Tom Gill and Jean King, did, and didn't make to top spot.

All the potential lieutenant governor candidates interviewed agree that the power of the office is virtually untapped and the importance of this year's race could equate to more responsibility for the lieutenant governor.

"The lieutenant governor's office is the type of office you can accomplish as much or as little as your desire," said Matsunaga. "I've always respected the office but if it hasn't gotten that legitimacy, let's give it," said Aiona.

Castberg said any kind of balance the lieutenant governor brings to the ticket would only serve to help the gubernatorial candidate. It also doesn't change the fact that the lieutenant governor's office was never intended to have functions independent of the governor, Castberg said.

"If one of the gubernatorial candidates says he would give the lieutenant governor more power and responsibility that may be a factor. But nothing really changes very much," Castberg said. "It doesn't necessarily change the nature of the (lieutenant governor's) office."