Hawaii Senate

Hawaii Senate
*Ka ‘Aha Kenekoa*
Hawaii Senate; Ka ‘Aha Kenekoa
	Hawaii State Legislature
Type
Type	Upper house
Term limits	None
History
New session started	January 16, 2019
Leadership
President of the Senate	Ronald D. Kouchi (D) ; since May 5, 2015
Vice President of the Senate	Michelle N. Kidani (D) ; since November 10, 2016
Majority Leader	J. Kalani English (D) ; since November 4, 2014
Minority Leader	Kurt Fevella (R) ; since November 6, 2018
Structure
Seats	25
Political groups	Majority Democratic (24); Minority Republican (1);
Length of term	4 years
Authority	Article III, Constitution of Hawaii
Salary	$57,852 per year + ; $175 per diem for non-Oʻahu members, or ; $10 per diem for Oʻahu members (2014)[1]
Elections
Last election	November 6, 2018; (12 seats)
Next election	November 3, 2020; (13 seats)
Redistricting	Hawaii Reapportionment Commission
Meeting place
	State Senate Chamber; Hawaii State Capitol; Honolulu, Hawaii
Website
	http://www.capitol.hawaii.gov/senate.aspx

The Hawaii Senate is the upper house of the Hawaii State Legislature. It consists of twenty-five members elected from an equal number of constituent districts across the islands and is led by the President of the Senate, elected from the membership of the body, currently Ron Kouchi. The forerunner of the Hawaii Senate during the government of the Kingdom of Hawaii was the House of Nobles originated in 1840. In 1894, the Constitution of the Republic of Hawaii renamed the upper house the present senate. Senators are elected to four-year terms and are not subject to term limits.

Like most state legislatures in the United States, the Hawaii State Senate is a part-time body and senators often have active careers outside government. The lower house of the legislature is the Hawaii House of Representatives. The membership of the Senate also elects additional officers to include the Senate Vice President, Senate Chief Clerk, Assistant Chief Clerk, Senate Sergeant at Arms, and Assistant Sergeant at Arms. The Hawaii Senate convenes in the Hawaii State Capitol in Honolulu.

Composition

From 2016 (when Sen. Sam Slom, Hawaii's sole Republican state Senator, was defeated in his bid for reelection) to 2018, the Democratic Party held all 25 seats in the Hawaii Senate. This made the Hawaii Senate the only state legislative chamber with no opposition members (this excludes the officially nonpartisan Nebraska Legislature).[2]

It was the first time since 1980 (when both the Alabama Senate and Louisiana Senate were all-Democratic) that any state legislative chamber had been completely dominated by a single party.[3]

↓
24	1
Democratic	R

Affiliation	Party (Shading indicates majority caucus)		Total

	Democratic	Republican		Vacant
End of previous legislature (2018)	25	0	25	0

Begin (2019)	24	1	25	0
Latest voting share	96%	4%

Leadership

Position	Name	Party	District
President of the Senate	Ron Kouchi	Democratic	8
Majority Leader	J. Kalani English	Democratic	7
Minority Leader	Kurt Fevella	Republican	19

Officers

Position	Name
Chief Clerk	Carol T. Taniguchi
Assistant Chief Clerk	Jennifer T. Chow
Sergeant at Arms	Bienvenido C. Villaflor
Assistant Sergeant at Arms	C.M. Park Kaleiwahea

List of current members

District	Name	Party	County(ies)	Areas Represented
1	Vacant[Note 1]	N/A	Hawaii	Hilo
2	Russell Ruderman	Dem		Puna, Kaʻū
3	Dru Kanuha	Dem		Kona, Kaʻū
4	Lorraine Inouye	Dem		Hilo, Hāmākua, Kohala, Waimea, Waikōloa, Kona
5	Gilbert Keith-Agaran[Note 2]	Dem	Maui	Wailuku, Waiheʻe, Kahului
6	Rosalyn Baker	Dem	Maui	South and West Maui
7	J. Kalani English	Dem	Maui, Kalawao	Hāna, East and Upcountry Maui, Molokaʻi, Lānaʻi and Kahoʻolawe
8	Ron Kouchi	Dem	Kauai	Kauaʻi, Niʻihau
9	Stanley Chang	Dem	Honolulu	Hawaiʻi Kai, ʻĀina Haina, Waiʻalae-Kāhala, Diamond Head
10	Les Ihara Jr.	Dem		Kaimukī, Kapahulu, Pālolo, Maunalani Heights, St. Louis Heights, Mōʻiliʻili, Ala Wai
11	Brian Taniguchi	Dem		Mānoa, Makiki, Punchbowl, Papakōlea
12	Sharon Moriwaki	Dem		Kakaʻako, Ala Moana, Waikīkī, McCully, Mōʻiliʻili
13	Karl Rhoads	Dem		Liliha, Pālama, Iwilei, Kalihi, Nuʻuanu, Pacific Heights, Pauoa, Lower Tantalus, Downtown
14	Donna Mercado Kim[Note 3]	Dem		Moanalua, ʻAiea, Fort Shafter, Kalihi Valley, Hālawa Valley
15	Glenn Wakai	Dem		Kalihi, Māpunapuna, Airport, Salt Lake, Āliamanu, Foster Village, Hickam, Pearl Harbor
16	Bennette Misalucha	Dem		Pearl City, Momilani, Pearlridge, ʻAiea, Royal Summit, ʻAiea Heights, Newtown, Waimalu, Hālawa, Pearl Harbor
17	Clarence Nishihara	Dem		Waipahū, Pearl City, Crestview, Mānana, Pacific Palisades
18	Michelle Kidani	Dem		Mililani Town, Waipiʻo Gentry, Waikele, Village Park, Royal Kunia
19	Kurt Fevella	Rep		ʻEwa Beach, ʻEwa by Gentry, Ocean Pointe, ʻEwa Villages, Iroquois Point
20	Mike Gabbard	Dem		Makakilo, Kapolei, Kalaeloa, ʻEwa, Waipahū
21	Maile Shimabukuro	Dem		Kalaeloa, Honokai Hale, Ko ʻOlina, Nānākuli, Māʻili, Waiʻanae, Mākaha, Mākua
22	Donovan Dela Cruz	Dem		Mililani Mauka, Waipiʻo Acres, Wheeler, Wahiawā, Whitmore Village, Poamoho
23	Gil Riviere	Dem		Kunia, Schofield Barracks, Wahiawā, Waialua, Haleʻiwa, Kahuku, Lāʻie, Kaʻaʻawa, Kāneʻohe
24	Jarrett Keohokalole	Dem		ʻĀhuimanu, Heʻeia, Kāneʻohe, Kāneʻohe MCAB
25	Laura Thielen	Dem		Kailua, Lanikai, Enchanted Lake, Keolu Hills, Maunawili, Waimānalo, Hawaiʻi Kai, Portlock

Vacant since December 16, 2020 resignation of Kai Kahele.[4]
Appointed to seat on January 7, 2013 by Governor Neil Abercrombie after Shan Tsutsui was appointed to be Lieutenant Governor.[5]
Became President of the Senate on December 28, 2012, after Shan Tsutsui was appointed by Governor Neil Abercrombie to be Lieutenant Governor.[6] Ousted as Senate President in unusual mid-year leadership reorganization on May 5, 2015.[7] First Filipina, but second Filipino American, Hawaiʻi Senate President[8][9]

Entrance to the Hawaii State Senate chamber

Capitol

The Hawaiʻi State Senate has been meeting at the Hawaiʻi State Capitol in downtown Honolulu since March 15, 1969. Previous to the decision of Governor John A. Burns to build the new Capitol building, the Hawaiʻi State Senate met in ʻIolani Palace.

Past composition of the Senate

References

National Conference of State Legislatures. "2014 State Legislator Compensation | Living Expense Allowances During Session". Retrieved November 10, 2014.
Cocke, Sophie (November 9, 2016). "Chang ousts Slom to create nation's only all-blue Senate". Honolulu Star-Advertiser.
Cathy Bussewitz, If Democrat wins seat, Hawaii could be first state in U.S. with one-party rule, Associated Press (October 23, 2016).
Blair, Chad (December 16, 2020). "Kai Kahele Resigns From Hawaii State Senate". civilbeat.org. Retrieved January 27, 2021.
Osher, Wendy (January 7, 2013). "Governor Appoints Gilbert Keith-Agaran to Maui Senate Seat". MauiNow.com. Retrieved February 3, 2013.
"State Senate chooses Donna Kim as new president". Honolulu Star-Advertiser. December 28, 2012. Retrieved February 3, 2013.
Dayton, Kevin (May 5, 2015). "Kauai's Kouchi replaces Kim as Senate president". Honolulu Star-Advertiser. Retrieved May 5, 2015.
Medina, Andrei (January 16, 2013). "Donna Kim makes history as first Filipina-American Hawaiʻi Senate President". GMA News. Retrieved January 19, 2013. Hawaiʻi Senate Vice President Donna Mercado Kim will make history on Thursday as she is installed as the first Filipina-American State Senate President.
"Senator Donna Mercado Kim's Biography". Project Vote Smart. One Common Ground. 2012. Retrieved January 19, 2013.

External links

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[5] Vacant since December 16, 2020 resignation of Kai Kahele.[4]

[7] Appointed to seat on January 7, 2013 by Governor Neil Abercrombie after Shan Tsutsui was appointed to be Lieutenant Governor.[5]

[12] Became President of the Senate on December 28, 2012, after Shan Tsutsui was appointed by Governor Neil Abercrombie to be Lieutenant Governor.[6] Ousted as Senate President in unusual mid-year leadership reorganization on May 5, 2015.[7] First Filipina, but second Filipino American, Hawaiʻi Senate President[8][9]

[1] National Conference of State Legislatures. "2014 State Legislator Compensation | Living Expense Allowances During Session". Retrieved November 10, 2014.

[2] Cocke, Sophie (November 9, 2016). "Chang ousts Slom to create nation's only all-blue Senate". Honolulu Star-Advertiser.

[3] Cathy Bussewitz, If Democrat wins seat, Hawaii could be first state in U.S. with one-party rule, Associated Press (October 23, 2016).

[4] Blair, Chad (December 16, 2020). "Kai Kahele Resigns From Hawaii State Senate". civilbeat.org. Retrieved January 27, 2021.

[6] Osher, Wendy (January 7, 2013). "Governor Appoints Gilbert Keith-Agaran to Maui Senate Seat". MauiNow.com. Retrieved February 3, 2013.

[8] "State Senate chooses Donna Kim as new president". Honolulu Star-Advertiser. December 28, 2012. Retrieved February 3, 2013.

[9] Dayton, Kevin (May 5, 2015). "Kauai's Kouchi replaces Kim as Senate president". Honolulu Star-Advertiser. Retrieved May 5, 2015.

[10] Medina, Andrei (January 16, 2013). "Donna Kim makes history as first Filipina-American Hawaiʻi Senate President". GMA News. Retrieved January 19, 2013. Hawaiʻi Senate Vice President Donna Mercado Kim will make history on Thursday as she is installed as the first Filipina-American State Senate President.

[11] "Senator Donna Mercado Kim's Biography". Project Vote Smart. One Common Ground. 2012. Retrieved January 19, 2013.

Members of the Hawaii State Senate
31st Legislature (2021) President of the Senate: Ron Kouchi (D) Vice President of the Senate: Michelle Kidani (D) Majority Leader: J. Kalani English (D) Minority Leader: Kurt Fevella (R)
Laura Acasio (D) Joy San Buenaventura (D) Dru Kanuha (D) Lorraine Inouye (D) Gilbert Keith-Agaran (D) Rosalyn Baker (D) J. Kalani English (D) Ron Kouchi (D) Stanley Chang (D) Les Ihara Jr. (D) Brian Taniguchi (D) Sharon Moriwaki (D) Karl Rhoads (D) Donna Mercado Kim (D) Glenn Wakai (D) Bennette Misalucha (D) Clarence Nishihara (D) Michelle Kidani (D) Kurt Fevella (R) Mike Gabbard (D) Maile Shimabukuro (D) Donovan Dela Cruz (D) Gil Riviere (D) Jarrett Keohokalole (D) Chris Lee (D)
Democratic (24) Republican (1) Hawaii Legislature Hawaii House of Representatives

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