Rex Johnson's resignation as CEO of the Hawai'i Tourism Authority came after he lost support from key members of Hawai'i's visitor industry and as local civic leaders redoubled their efforts to oust him.

Last week, members of the HTA's board of directors were deadlocked over whether to retain Johnson or remove him for forwarding racist and sexist e-mails on his state computer, people familiar with the board said.

But several board members who had previously supported Johnson turned this week after key tourism executives called for his ouster, sources said.

Several visitor industry executives — including former Hawai'i Visitors & Convention Bureau and ex-Hawaiian Airlines CEO Paul Casey and Starwood Hotels & Resorts Senior Vice President Keith Vieira — said they did not believe that Johnson is a racist but expressed worries that the HTA e-mail controversy would have a negative impact on Hawai'i's No. 1 industry.

Supporters such as former Bank of Hawaii CEO Larry Johnson and Outrigger Enterprises CEO David Carey — who previously testified on Johnson's behalf — did not provide any statements in support of the HTA chief at Wednesday's decisive meeting.

"Rex may be a friendly acquaintance of mine but the fact is there is dishonor and disrespect and this is the issue for you and the HTA board," former HVCB marketing executive Tom Kiely wrote in testimony for Wednesday's board meeting.

"It is safe to say that (the) situation with Rex has crossed the very defined boundary, and controversy, dishonor and disrespect has resulted not just for the HTA but quite possibly for the entire tourism industry."

Johnson, who has headed the HTA since 2002, resigned from the $200,000-a-year post Wednesday after the HTA's board met behind closed doors for more than eight hours to discuss his fate.

HTA Chairman Kelvin Bloom declined to comment on the board's deliberations and the authority has not disclosed any details about the financial terms concerning Johnson's resignation.

MANY DEMANDED OUSTER

Johnson has faced harsh criticism from local civic leaders and Gov. Linda Lingle since it came to light that he exchanged racist and sexist jokes by e-mail on his state computer.

One of the e-mails — obtained by The Advertiser through a request under the state's open records law — referred to U.S. Sen. Barack Obama as a "coon" and U.S. Sen. Hillary Clinton as a "beaver."

The release of those e-mails came after the HTA's board in August cut his annual pay by $40,000 to $200,000 and shortened his four-year contract to one year because 23 adult-content e-mails were found on his state computer.

Kathryn Xian of Girl Fest Hawaii, which called for Johnson's removal in August, said she was encouraged by the diverse groups that spoke out against Johnson's retention in Wednesday's meeting.

Among the groups testifying against Johnson were the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People, which held a rally in Waikiki several weeks ago and collected hundreds of signatures, the African American Lawyers Association of Hawaii and Latin Business Hawaii.

Other groups such as the Japanese American Citizens League and the Hawaii Women's Political Caucus have also called for Johnson's removal.

Of the 100 people who provided written testimony for Wednesday's meeting, about half called for Johnson's ouster.

"It sends a good message to the public about being accountable at all levels of government," Xian said.

Jose Villa, publisher of Hawaii Hispanic News, said the protest from the diverse groups sent a message to the HTA's board that the controversy wasn't going to go away unless board members dealt with it.

"There were a lot of groups that were offended and this time a lot of groups spoke up," Villa said.

Neal Milner, political science professor and ombudsman at the University of Hawai'i-Manoa, said he's surprised it took the HTA board so long to seek Johnson's removal.

"You could see the pressure building and it took on a different dimension when race becomes an issue," Milner said.