By Jerry Burris
Advertiser Editorial Editor

There's something odd about the office of lieutenant governor in Hawai'i.

Although it is a statewide position that comes with an impressive koa-lined office on the fifth floor of the Capitol and all the other accouterments of power, there really is nothing for the lieutenant governor to do.

Oh, sure, the LG is in charge of name-changes. And when the governor leaves the state, the lieutenant gets to sign paperwork and receive visitors.

But since the responsibility of running elections was taken away from the office, there is virtually no other statutory responsibility for the job. Given the lack of defined responsibilities, why are so many bright, qualified people campaigning for the job this year?

The obvious answer is they have ambitions to become governor, although most will dissemble and say they have nothing more in mind than becoming lieutenant governor and doing a bang-up job at it.

But they have to talk about more than that general ambition. Each of the candidates — particularly the leading ones — wants to come up with a "portfolio," if you will, that they want to pursue.

In essence they are taking the empty vessel that is this post and filling it according to their own experience and their own ambitions.

So what are the major candidates saying? Their ambitions are as varied as their backgrounds.

The Republicans

• James "Duke" Aiona is a former family court and drug court judge, and that experience deeply informs his ambitions as lieutenant governor. He wants to become involved hands-on in restructuring our prison system, developing drug treatment alternatives for convicts with substance abuse problems and working directly with families to catch potentially troubled youngsters before they enter the "system."

• Cam Cavasso, a former state representative and small businessman, believes that by example and by dint of energetic persuasion, he can restore a sense of "character" to civic life in the Islands. From individual families to politics itself, Cavasso says, there has been a loss of character and solid values that diminishes the quality of life in the Islands.

• Dalton Tanonaka, a former television news reporter and anchor in Asia, believes he can use his connections, experience and contacts in Asia to promote Hawai'i's interests in that part of the world. Tanonaka is new to politics, but he says his local roots and international experience will add great value to the next administration.

The Democrats

• Clayton Hee, a former legislator and member of the board of the Office of Hawaiian affairs, has a lot on his mind, including the broad issue of Hawaiian entitlements and self-determination, which he says none of the other candidates fully understands. He sees himself as an activist lieutenant governor, looking for new sources of income for a cash strapped state (largely from tourists) and educating the governor on the importance of resolving the Hawaiian issues.

• Donna Ikeda is a former teacher, a longtime member of the state Legislature, where she served as Senate Ways and Means Chairman, and until recently a member of the board of education. This background, she says, makes her ideally suited to bringing the various pieces of the public education puzzle together to improve our schools. Since she knows the issues from all sides, she says, she is ready to bring the various players together and get them working toward the same educational goals.

• Matt Matsunaga, a state senator and co-chair of the Senate Judiciary Committee, says he is running because he wants to take what he has learned at the legislative level and apply it on a statewide basis. The son of a beloved former U.S. senator, the late Spark Matsunaga, Matt says he wants to work specifically on bringing high-tech industry to Hawai'i and on alternative energy.

So, depending on what pushes your button, you have a wide variety of interests and talents to choose from in deciding your choice for lieutenant governor.

But keep in mind that what you are really voting for is someone who is capable of serving as governor. That can be either temporarily, or permanently if the lieutenant governor eventually steps up to the No. 1 spot.

After all, the last three did exactly that.

Reach Jerry Burris through letters@honoluluadvertiser.com.