Illness will not All signs point to U.S. Rep. Patsy Mink staying in the race to regain her 2nd Congressional District seat.
halt Mink campaign
Her spokeswoman says a
Inouye home with flu
withdrawal is "not an issue"By Crystal Kua
ckua@starbulletin.com
That means the Hawaii Democratic Party likely will not have to find another candidate to replace her by tomorrow's deadline, a party official said.
"There's no need at this point because Mrs. Mink and her campaign have indicated to myself as state party chair she will be proceeding to campaign," said Democratic Party Chairwoman Lorraine Akiba.
"She is still recuperating from the viral pneumonia, but is confident she will be able to fulfill her candidacy and has no intention of withdrawing from the race."
Mink has been in serious condition at Straub Clinic & Hospital's intensive care unit for more than three weeks while being treated for viral pneumonia brought on by chickenpox.
But little else is known about her status.
The state Attorney General's Office has said that the Democratic Party has until tomorrow to pick a successor candidate if Mink steps down as its nominee. If Mink gets out of the race after tomorrow, the Democratic Party could be left without a candidate going into the general election.
On the question of whether Mink will withdraw, her spokeswoman Joan Manke said, "That's not an issue."
She said there's no change or interruption in the campaign.
State Rep. Bob McDermott, Mink's Republican opponent in the general election, said he also believes that Mink won't pull out, especially after seeing newspaper advertisements thanking supporters for their confidence in her.
"That's not the act of someone who's not campaigning," McDermott said.
"(Tomorrow) we'll know whether she's on the ballot for sure and I believe she's going to stay on the ballot. They believe that a ... Patsy Mink who is in very bad shape can still beat an able-bodied Bob McDermott."
But he thinks Mink should withdraw from the race.
"I think it's an insult to the people of Hawaii to have her on the ballot. She's no longer fit for office," McDermott said. "I urge the Democrats to replace her with somebody, anybody who would go around the state and we would debate."
Democratic Party bylaws call for the party's State Central Committee to fill a statewide or congressional candidate vacancy caused by death, withdrawal, disqualification or other reasons spelled out in state law.
If the committee is unable to fill the vacancy in a timely manner, the state chairperson may fill the vacancy.
But the party won't have to go through that process in Mink's case, Akiba said. "Her campaign, again, and her campaign staff are campaigning hard for her. They're proceeding to continue the campaign until the general election."
McDermott said he's leaving for Washington to talk to political action committees to raise money for his campaign, but when he returns Oct. 7, he plans to make fitness for office a campaign issue.
"I am going to campaign, but I'm not going to enjoy it and it's not going to be a pleasant thing because the campaign is going to be about one thing -- her fitness for office. That is the issue and right now she's not fit for office."
Rep. Patsy Mink
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U.S. Sen. Daniel Inouye was home ill yesterday with what appears to be a flu bug, his Honolulu office said. Apparent flu bug
puts Inouye out
of commissionAssociated Press
Inouye missed the Senate's 90-8 vote to create a commission to look into intelligence failures and other government missteps before the Sept. 11 attacks and recommend how to prevent future disasters.
Inouye's schedule for yesterday was canceled and may be canceled for today, depending on how he feels, his office said.
The 78-year-old senator's illness puts half of Hawaii's congressional delegation out of commission.
U.S. Rep. Patsy Mink, 74, remains at Straub Clinic & Hospital in Honolulu, where she was admitted Aug. 31 after contracting viral pneumonia from a case of chickenpox.
Her office has provided few details on Mink's medical condition beyond saying she was in serious condition and on the road to recovery.
Sen. Daniel Inouye
