HIRONO: Will run for mayor rather than governor.

Hirono has served as lieutenant governor since 1994 and had hoped to continue a tradition of succeeding her boss as governor as the last three of her predecessors have done.

With partisan polls showing Hirono trailing Honolulu Mayor Jeremy Harris over the last year and losing ground in recent months, speculation has been increasing that she would switch political races.

“What we really need are leaders who can bring people together and that’s what I’ve been doing for 20 years,” Hirono said this morning at a news conference at the Plaza Club in downtown Honolulu.

“I envision a city where people have good jobs, where they feel safe, where their families are sustained, where communities are strong.”

She discounted the theory that she switched to a race she could win or that her lack of municipal experience would hurt her ability to do the mayor’s job. “It has nothing to do with my believing or feeling that I could not win for governor,” Hirono said.

Hirono, 54, served in the state House from 1980 to 1994. She was born in Fukushima, Japan, and has lived in Hawai‘i since she was 9 years old.

She said supporters had been urging her to run for mayor for some time but she became more interested in that race after the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks and their profound effect on the economy.

Asked about the top issues in the race, Hirono said: “People are concerned about the economy, their jobs, safety.”