The largest House district on O'ahu also has the greatest amount of agricultural land, and while many on the North Shore rally to keep the country country, the two candidates running to represent District 46 believe balance is necessary when moving the community forward.

District 46 stretches from La'ie to Mokule'ia and up to Kunia and Schofield Barracks.

It is most associated with farming and surfing, and its diverse population ranges from remnant plantation workers to wealthy landowners. The hotel at Turtle Bay is one of the largest employers, and a strong business group is helping to shape the future of historic Hale'iwa Town, a popular tourist attraction.

Large farm companies such as Syngenta, Pioneer Hi-Bred International and Monsanto Co. are purchasing thousands of acres from old-time Hawai'i businesses such as Dole and Campbell.

The companies want to farm the land, but there is pressure for housing development on hundreds more acres.

Rep. Michael Magaoay, the incumbent Democrat, wants to continue representing the district, but he'll have to defeat Republican challenger Gil Riviere to hang onto his seat.

Riviere said he will advocate for agriculture, biofuel research and a balance between urban and agricultural land use. So far O'ahu has struck that balance but change threatens that, Riviere said.

"I think we are at the crossroad where we have to decide whether we're going to preserve some open space for future generations or are we going to continue down the path and become like a Hong Kong or Singapore," he said.

He said he will fight to maintain farms in the community but noted that there's room for some development.

"I'm not anti-development but I'm opposed to inappropriate development," said Riviere, who has fought against expansion at Turtle Bay and development at Pupukea through the various organizations he belongs to.

TRANSPORTATION FOCUS

Riviere, 49, is a North Shore Neighborhood Board member who has focused on transportation issues, and he opened Town & Country Mortgage. A soccer coach, he has worked with a variety of charities — including the Diabetes Association, Alzheimer's Foundation, March of Dimes and Jerry Lewis telethon.

Riviere said he wants to stimulate and promote more agriculture in the district where thousands of acres are fallow following the decline of pineapple and sugar. To do that, the water at Lake Wilson must be upgraded. The quality is so poor that it can only be used on tree crops yet the overflow goes into the ocean, raising concerns about eating fish and crab from the stream, he said.

Remediation projects show that the water can be cleaned but nothing is being done, Riviere said.

Districtwide, people are concerned about such things as affordable housing but want the country to stay rural and they see Turtle Bay as a stand-alone resort, and these are things he supports, he said.

Riviere casts himself as a man for the people in the district and said his strength would be in representing community interests. He meets with people every day, he said, and he's learned that they are ready for a change.

EIGHT-YEAR VETERAN

All of his campaign contributions come from people in the district, he said.

Magaoay, 55, has held office for eight years and serves on several committees: Finance; Water, Land and Ocean Resources and Hawaiian Affairs; and Legislative Management, which he chairs.

Last session he was listed as one of the introducers on 28 bills that became law, including support for cancer research, a farm loan program, allowing solar energy facilities on marginal agriculture land, restriction on noxious weed, reducing regulatory burdens on small businesses and control of coqui frogs.

GO WITH THE PARTY

Magaoay said over the years he has helped save Kahuku Hospital, Waimea Valley, Pupukea-Paumalu and Poamoho Camp. He said he has brought money to schools, to build an administration building at Sunset Beach Elementary School and a media/library for Waialua Elementary School.

"I'm here to get results for the community," Magaoay said, adding that as long as Democrats rule in the House, it's best to elect a Democrat.

Magaoay said his district is vast and each community is like a separate country with its own problems and priorities, but they all seem to want the same thing: to maintain the rural environment. Priorities include affordable housing in Kahuku, quality water from Lake Wilson for farming, sidewalks in Hale'iwa Town, road repairs in Sunset Beach and Waimea, a bypass road in Laniakea, maintaining Waialua and shaping development in Mokule'ia.

But the big issue for the state will be the economy and trying to find ways to cut the budget, he said, adding that the best way to do that is to audit all departments to find where rational cuts can be made. The process may take a while but it will prevent arbitrary cuts that can hurt the state, Magaoay said.

Many say government is top-heavy, so an audit should be able to reveal that, he said.

"We as legislators also have to be careful about initiating any new programs if there are (budget) cuts," Magaoay said. "We have to be prudent."

District 46 has about 31,000 residents, of which more than 44 percent are white, 9 percent African American, 21 percent Asian and 8 percent Hawaiian and Pacific Islanders, 13 percent are of mixed race and 4 percent are others.