Reapportionment panel approves redrawn districts
By Kevin Dayton
Advertiser Capitol Bureau Chief
The state Reapportionment Commission wrapped up its work yesterday amid praise and some complaints about the new boundaries the commission drew for 25 Senate districts and 51 House districts.
Commission members voted unanimously to adopt new maps that will set out the new district boundaries for the next decade.
The commission has been widely praised for generally striking a balance between the interests of incumbent Democrats and Republicans, but criticized by some for excluding military dependents from the population counts used to help determine the boundaries of each district.
The commission also decided yesterday which of the winners in the 25 Senate races next year will receive two-year terms and which will receive four-year terms to allow for a system of staggered terms. Starting with the 2004 election, every Senate term will be for four years.
The changes are expected to cause turnover among senators and trigger some changes in the House.
A Reapportionment Commission is appointed every 10 years to redraw the House and Senate districts to make the populations in each district equal using numbers from the latest Census.
Lawmakers and potential candidates track the demographic changes, as the new boundaries may affect which candidates have the best chance of winning.
In the Senate, districts were redrawn so that the homes of six incumbent Democratic senators were placed in three districts, which will require the senators to move, step down or run against other Democrats.
In urban Honolulu, the commission drew up a new district that encompasses the homes of both Sen. Suzanne Chun Oakland, D-14th (Palama, 'Alewa Heights), and Sen. Rod Tam, D-13th (Nu'uanu, Downtown, Sand Island).
Also in urban Honolulu, a new district was drawn that includes the homes of Democratic dissident Sen. Les Ihara Jr., D-10th (Waikiki, Kaimuki),and Sen. Matt Matsunaga, D-9th (Wai'alae, Palolo).
On the Big Island, the new commission maps place the homes of Sen. Lorraine Inouye, D-1st (Hawi, N. Kona, Waimea), and Sen. David Matsuura, D-2nd (S. Hilo, Puna) in the same district.
In a last-minute change, the final version of the maps imposed new boundaries that separate Sen. Jan Buen, D-4th (W. Maui, Moloka'i, Lana'i), and Sen. J. Kalani English, D-5th (Kahului, Upcountry Maui). Earlier versions had placed the two in the same district.
The commission also separated Sens. Fred Hemmings R-25th (Kailua, Waimanalo) and Sam Slom, R-8th (Wai'alae Iki, Hawai'i Kai). Earlier drafts of the maps also had lumped the two Republicans into the same East O'ahu district.
Slom objected to the change yesterday, saying the new boundaries divide up Hawai'i Kai.
The commission also created a new Senate district in Kapolei in which no incumbent resides. This likely will be hotly contested in the 2002 election. A number of Republicans have won or made strong showings in the Kapolei area in recent years.
Another promising district for the GOP is a newly drawn seat on the Big Island that includes much of North Kona and South Kohala, where voters have been electing Republicans for years. There is no incumbent in that district.
In the state House, the commission redrew Windward districts that place Reps. Charles Djou, R-47th (Kahalu'u, Kane'ohe), and Rep. David Pendleton, R-50th (Maunawili, Enchanted Lake), in the same district.
Also in urban Honolulu, the commission redrew Kalihi districts to place the homes of Reps. Ben Cabreros, D-30th (Kalihi Kai, Mapunapuna), and Felipe "Jun" Abinsay, D-29th (Kalihi, Palama, Moanalua), in the same district.
In Pearl City, the commission combined makai areas of Pearl City represented by Roy Takumi, D-36th (Pearl City, Waipahu), with the mauka Pearl City neighborhoods represented by Rep. Nobu Yonamine, D-35th (Pearl City, Pacific Palisades).
The new boundaries also combine the homes of Rep. Terry Nui Yoshinaga, D-22nd (Mo'ili'ili, McCully, Pawa'a), and Rep. Ed Case, D-23rd (Manoa), into the same district. That isn't likely to create any conflict, however, because Case has announced he is running for governor.
Other changes likely to affect the House are the creation of two vacant House districts on O'ahu. Those districts, in Waipahu and 'Ewa Beach, likely will lean Democrat, presenting an uphill fight for Republican candidates.
Reach Kevin Dayton at 525-8070 or kdayton@honoluluadvertiser.com
