Democrats search for an edge
By Lynda Arakawa
Advertiser Capitol Bureau
In the remaining months before the September primary election, Democratic gubernatorial candidates will be flitting across the state, trying to win over Democrats and an even larger number of independent voters.
Compared with Republican gubernatorial candidate Linda Lingle, who has long been the chosen one in her party to run for governor, the Democratic candidates appear to be playing catch-up. Honolulu Mayor Jeremy Harris' announcement two weeks ago that he was pulling out of the governor's race instantly created a level playing field for lower-profile Democratic candidates such as Rep. Ed Case and D.G. "Andy" Anderson, and left Lt. Gov. Mazie Hirono — who had abandoned the governor's race to run for Honolulu mayor — to revive her gubernatorial campaign.
D.G. "Andy" Anderson has an eclectic group of supporters.
All three Democratic candidates say their campaigns have accelerated in the past few weeks and that they are focusing their energy in the next month on building their organizations on the Neighbor Islands.
Despite her late jump back into the race, Hirono's campaign — at least at this point — appears to be ahead of her Democratic opponents. She has campaign headquarters on the Big Island and Maui, and was ahead of Case and Anderson in a recent Advertiser Hawai'i Poll. Hirono appears to have relatively strong support among Filipino and Japanese voters and has a relatively friendly relationship with public worker unions, a significant base in the Democratic Party.
Hirono's campaign reported having $231,372 by Dec. 31 and since then has held a fund-raiser that a campaign official said drew 2,000 people.
"I have faith that this is not going to be a campaign that's going to be won, either in the primary or in the general election, by who has the most money," Hirono said. "This is the election that's going to show that Hawai'i can't be bought."
Hirono's campaign is managed by Bob Toyofuku, a prominent lobbyist whose clients have included Hawaiian Airlines, Coalition for a Tobacco-Free Hawai'i and the environmentalist group Trust for Public Land. Toyofuku worked on Hirono's 1994 and 1998 campaigns for lieutenant governor as well as the campaigns of various state lawmakers.
Others helping Hirono's campaign include state Insurance Commissioner and former Big Island lawmaker Wayne Metcalf and Kate Stanley, a former lawmaker and state Department of Human Services official.
Hirono's media work is being handled by Ostrander-Chu, Inc., which had been producing print ads for Case's gubernatorial campaign before Hirono returned to the governor's race.
Ostrander-Chu has kept a relatively low profile in political campaigns, working on Hirono's earlier campaigns for lieutenant governor and handling some ads for the Ben Cayetano-Hirono campaign. The agency has done ads for the Democratic Party as well as Suzanne Chun Oakland's successful 1996 bid against incumbent Sen. Milton Holt.
Case said his campaign has gained momentum in the past few weeks and has raised roughly $250,000 so far. His political team, supervised by internationally known political consultant Joe Napolitan, has a well-established track record in Hawai'i politics. Napolitan worked on the campaigns of Cayetano as well as former Govs. John Burns and George Ariyoshi.
Case also has the help of political consultant Jim Loomis, who is working on the campaigns of U.S. Rep. Neil Abercrombie and Maui Mayor James Apana, as well as Honolulu City Councilman Jon Yoshimura's bid for lieutenant governor. Loomis has also worked on Harris' 1994 and 1996 mayoral campaigns and Frank Fasi's successful 1992 mayoral campaign.
Sticking with the message
Case said he will roll out statewide TV ads tomorrow. He will be spending much of the next month campaigning on the Neighbor Islands. He said his campaign will be opening its Hilo headquarters within the next two weeks and is discussing headquarters on Kaua'i and Maui.
Unions may not like Rep. Ed Case's fiscal ideas.
Case is known for his fiscally conservative views, which have angered some public worker unions. But he said he believes union members understand his ideas and are supportive of his candidacy.
"I will leave it up to the public employee unions to determine to what extent they want to support me, but whether they support me or not is not going to change the situation that we're in and I don't believe that will change the decision that we have to make," he said.
Seeking a support base
Anderson, a former Republican state senator and city managing director, appears strongest among Native Hawaiian voters but lagged behind his opponents in a recent political poll. He is also spending time talking with various groups and visiting the Neighbor Islands and said he should have campaign headquarters set up on the Neighbor Islands within a couple of weeks.
"I'm still trying to build a base, talking to as many groups and people in organizations as I can," he said. "And that's what I had scheduled anyway. With Jeremy out it just means that there's more people to talk to because a lot of his people are now available so we held several meetings with his group trying to bring them on."
As of the end of last year his campaign reported having $1,904, but Anderson said his campaign has raised about $300,000 and spent about $250,000 since he announced his candidacy in November. He said he has gathered a number of "independents" to handle his media work, including people formerly with Starr Seigle Communications, which worked on the campaigns of Cayetano, Burns and Ariyoshi.
Anderson's main outlet is a weekly call-in radio show he started about three months ago. He has also presented the media with his plans on dealing with various issues such as gasoline prices and state services for special needs students. He said he will hold news conferences on a couple of other issues before beginning TV ads.
Anderson's campaign support comes from an eclectic group that includes former University of Hawai'i President Fujio Matsuda, Hawaiian activist Dennis "Bumpy" Kanahele and former Campbell Estate trustee Fred Trotter. Former Democratic Party Chairman Walter Heen and former state senator and ousted Bishop Estate trustee Richard Wong are also advising Anderson.
Secret strategy
As for the Republican primary, former Maui Mayor Lingle said she expects that by the end of the month her campaign will have doubled the $561,688 balance it last reported having six months ago.
Lt. Gov. Mazie Hirono is the Democrats' best hope in a recent poll.
While Lingle has begun radio ads, she would disclose neither when she would begin TV spots nor who is handling her ads, saying only that her campaign has hired a local ad crew and strategists from the Mainland.
"I like the campaign security of not having it known who is doing what because it is a small community," she said. "We want our strategy to be our own."
Lingle's poll ratings and campaign contributions are well ahead of her Republican opponent, John Carroll, a former state lawmaker. Carroll last reported having $1,629 as of Dec. 31, but said his campaign is receiving contributions steadily and a few weeks ago collected $15,000 within three days.
Carroll's media work is handled by Veritas Media Group, a Washington, D.C.-based agen-cy whose Web site lists past and present clients including talk-radio host Alan Keyes, who campaigned unsuccessfully for president in 2000, Human Life International and the American Conservative Union. Carroll's public relations work is also handled by Chris Hart, who runs a local ad company.
Those who have joined Carroll's campaign are former Kaua'i County Council member Abel Medeiros and International Karate League director Walter Nishioka.
Reach Lynda Arakawa at larakawa@honoluluadvertiser.com or at 525-8070.
