40 file to finish Mink's term, including husband

• McDermott withdraws from special election

By Mike Leidemann
Advertiser Staff Writer

The husband of the late Patsy Mink heads the list of 41 candidates, ranging from the well-known to the obscure, who will be on the ballot when a special election is held Nov. 30 to determine who will serve the last few weeks of Mink's congressional term.

John Mink, shown at the Hawai'i Democratic Convention in June with the late Patsy Mink, will run to fill his wife's congressional seat. Advertiser library photo • June 2, 2002

Other candidates include several current and former state legislators: Ed Case, Whitney Anderson and Malama Solomon. There is a former Hono-lulu City Council member (Kekoa Kaapu), a well-known radio personality (Ron Jacobs), and the person Mink defeated in the primary election (Steve Tataii).

In addition, the list of candidates for the 2nd congressional district seat, representing rural O'ahu and the Neighbor Islands, offers several dozen less-than-household names from O'ahu, Maui, Kaua'i and the Big Island.

The list will not include Bob McDermott, the Republican candidate in the general election, who said today he was withdrawing from the special election. He said he would give his reasons in an afternoon press conference. Under state law, candidates in the Nov. 30 special election had until 4:30 p.m. today to withdraw.

Yesterday, McDermott said that the last-minute entry of John Mink into the special election was an orchestrated and calculated move by Democratic Party officials to create a sympathy vote for their party.

The 40 candidates will be competing for the right to serve five weeks in Washington at a time when Congress is likely to have finished most of its work for the year.

John Mink, a retired hydrologist, said he had decided to run "so that Patsy's hard work for the people of the 2nd District does not come to a premature and abrupt end on Nov. 30."

Patsy Mink died Sept. 28 after being hospitalized for more than a month with viral pneumonia. Her name remains on the Nov. 5 general election ballot. If she receives the most votes, a new election will be held Jan. 4, but John Mink said he would not be a candidate in that race.

"I respect John Mink very much, but I know that Democratic Party elders strongly encouraged him to do this," McDermott said. "I think it works against them, though, because there will now be two very well-known Democrats (Case and John Mink) on the ballot who will split the vote and leave me as the only viable Republican candidate."

Just hours before Mink's candidacy became official yesterday afternoon, Gov. Ben Cayetano seemed to be among those opposing it.

"You know, I like people to run for that seat who are really interested in serving beyond those 30 days," Cayetano said. "I think that those who want to get into it and really serve the people on a long-term basis should be the ones who get into the race."

Democratic Party chairwoman Lorraine Akiba denied that the party had favored or pushed Mink to run.

"John Mink is an exemplary candidate, but as party chair, I'm duty -bound to treat all candidates equally," Akiba said. "This election, and the one that might become necessary on Jan. 4, will be open, fair accessible to all qualified Democratic candidates."

Case, the most prominent of the Democrats in the special election, said he knows and likes John Mink, but "with great respect for him and his entire family, the 2nd District needs more than a caretaker representation."

Most candidates in the first special election, and several more-prominent local politicians are expected to run if a Jan. 4 election becomes necessary.

Among the candidates who did not file papers to run in the Nov. 30 special election but are likely to run later are former Gov. John Waihee and former City Council Chairman Mufi Hannemann.

"I think the word went out from the Democratic Party that Mink would run in the special election," McDermott said. "That's why you see Waihee, Hannemann and others backing out at this point."

Hannemann said he was not running in November so Mink's staff could continue to represent the district through her term.

"It seems that the right thing to do is to honor Mrs. Mink and the wishes of the majority of the voters ... to the very end of her term," Hannemann said. He said he would run for Congress if a January election were held.

Democratic Party officials, including Cayetano, have expressed concern that the crowded fields in both winner-take-all special elections could result in one candidate winning with a very small share of the vote.

Earlier this month, Cayetano had tried to head off that possibility by seeking to let the Democratic Party name a substitute candidate for Mink in the general election. That request was rejected by the Hawai'i Supreme Court, setting the stage for the Nov. 30 election, which could give the winning candidate a small leg up in the January election.

Case and McDermott said the winner of the special election could also have a seniority advantage over other newly elected members of Congress if he or she goes on to win the Jan. 4 election.