Brian Schatz, a former Makiki state representative and local volunteer for U.S. Sen. Barack Obama's presidential campaign, announced yesterday he is running for chairman of the Democratic Party of Hawai'i.

Schatz is the only candidate so far and, if elected at the party's state convention in May, he would give the Obama another superdelegate to the Democratic National Convention in Denver in August.

With 37,000 registered Democrats looking for leadership, Schatz said his main order of business as a party chairman will be to funnel that energy through the November election cycle to maintain a Democratic majority in local and national politics.

"My job is to continue the momentum created Feb. 19 during the caucuses and give those registered Democrats a voice," Schatz said yesterday outside the State Capitol at a news conference to announce his candidacy. "Whoever wins the presidential nomination, we have to deliver Hawai'i for the Democrats."

If selected at the May 23-25 state Democratic Convention as chairman, his position will automatically make him one of nine superdelegates to the national convention in August, Schatz said.

As head of the Hawai'i-born Obama's local campaign for president, Schatz said he's made it known that he is an Obama supporter, but that doesn't have any effect on how the party should be run in Hawai'i.

As a controversy simmered over comments Obama made in San Francisco recently about the "bitter" attitude of working-class voters in Pennsylvania, Schatz said every word uttered by the candidates is being put under a microscope during the long primary campaign.

The Pennsylvania primary is April 22.

"I will vote for Obama in August at the national convention as a superdelegate, if I'm chosen to lead the party in Hawai'i," Schatz said. "Mistakes are being elevated and statements become news when it should be about policy decisions. No one can say everything the right way all the time. We have to keep our eye on the November election. This too shall pass."

Maya Soetero-Ng, Obama's sister, was in attendance yesterday to lend her support. She said Schatz would be fair in running the Democratic Party.

"We need someone in the position that we believe is progressive, thoughtful and fresh and helps with all Democrats," Soetero-Ng said. "It's not about the Obama campaign. It's about citizenship in Hawai'i. I think he'll do great things for the party."

Schatz has been courting party leaders for months and is considered the favorite for the job. Annelle Amaral, a former Kunia state representative who leads O'ahu Democrats, has said she is interested in the post.

Many party insiders would prefer that the campaign for party chairman not be a proxy for the national fight for superdelegates between Obama and rival Democratic presidential candidate U.S. Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton of New York.

But the chairman, along with the new vice chairman and an unpledged add-on delegate chosen after the state convention, will be among the state's nine superdelegates to the national convention.

Three of the state's superdelegates — U.S. Sen. Daniel K. Inouye and DNC committeeman Richard Port for Clinton and U.S. Rep. Neil Abercrombie for Obama — have committed to a candidate.

Three others — U.S. Sen. Daniel Akaka, U.S. Rep. Mazie Hirono and DNC committeewoman Dolly Strazar — are undecided.

Schatz said the party's priority should be retaining the thousands of new Democrats who turned out in record numbers for the Hawai'i caucuses in February.

OLD AND NEW MEMBERS

Obama, an Illinois Democrat, won the caucuses overwhelmingly and was awarded 14 of Hawai'i's pledged delegates based on the results. Clinton was awarded six pledged delegates. Adding the superdelegates, the state has a total of 29 delegates to the national convention.

"Our job is to make sure that those people who took an extraordinary step of joining a political party feel it was worth it to them, feel welcome, feel engaged, and know that there are ways for them to participate in the political process over the long run," Schatz said. "The greatest challenge for the Democratic Party is to make sure that what happened in February was not a one-time event, but the beginning of a resurgence in grassroots enthusiasm and engagement."

Schatz said the party needs to integrate these new Democrats with the loyal, and aging, core of Democrats who have been driving the party for decades. Many of these traditional Democrats, including those close to Inouye and organized labor, have endorsed Clinton.

"People who have been in this party for 20 or 30 years deserve some deference and ought to be paid attention to (and) listened to, and they ought to continue to guide the party as it grows," Schatz said. "The good news is that you've got this infusion of new talent and enthusiasm and voters.

"And that combination of institutional knowledge and a connection to the Democrat values that bring us all to the table is potentially a very valuable combination."

Schatz gave up his state House seat in 2006 for an unsuccessful campaign for the Democratic nomination in the 2nd Congressional District. He finished fourth in a 10-candidate field.

Schatz, the chief executive officer of the nonprofit Helping Hands Hawai'i, said he does not plan to quit his job if elected party chairman. He said he would probably discuss with the state central committee some part-time compensation from the party to avoid the appearance that the nonprofit was subsidizing his partisan political activity.