The 2012 United States House of Representatives elections in Hawaii were held on Tuesday, November 6, 2012, to elect the two U.S. representatives from the state, one from each of the state's two congressional districts. The elections coincided with the elections of other federal and state offices, including a quadrennial presidential election and an election for the United States Senate. Primary elections were held on August 11, 2012.
Overview United States House of Representatives elections in Hawaii, 2012PartyVotesPercentageSeats beforeSeats after+/– Democratic 285,008 67.45 2 2 ±0 Republican 137,531 32.55 0 0 ±0 Totals 422,539 100.00% 2 2 ±0
District 1
Democrat Colleen Hanabusa, who was first elected to represent the 1st district in 2010, ran for re-election.
Democratic primary Candidates Nominee Colleen Hanabusa, incumbent U.S. representative
Eliminated in primary Roy Wyttenbach II
Primary results
Republican primary Former U.S. Representative Charles Djou, who represented the 1st district from May 2010 until January 2011, sought and received the Republican nomination to challenge Hanabusa again. He defeated C. Kaui Amsterdam and John Giuffre in the Republican primary.
Candidates Nominee Charles Djou, former U.S. representative
Eliminated in primary C. Kaui Amsterdam John Giuffre
Primary results
General election Endorsements
Predictions SourceRankingAs of The Cook Political Report November 5, 2012 Rothenberg November 2, 2012 Roll Call, November 4, 2012 Sabato's Crystal BallCrystal Ball , November 5, 2012 NY TimesHouse Race Ratings, The New York Times, November 4, 2012RCP, November 4, 2012The Hill November 4, 2012
Results
District 2
Democrat Mazie Hirono, who had represented the 2nd district since 2007, announced in May 2011 that she would run for the U.S. Senate rather than for re-election to the House.
Democratic primary Candidates Nominee Tulsi Gabbard, Honolulu City Councilmember
Eliminated in primary Rafael "Del" del Castillo, attorney and patients' rights advocate Mufi Hannemann, former mayor of Honolulu Esther Kia'aina, chief advocate for the Office of Hawaiian Affairs Bob Marx, attorney Miles Shiratori, financial advisor
Declined Tammy Duckworth, assistant secretary for Public and Intergovernmental Affairs in the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs and unsuccessful candidate for the House of Representatives in Illinois in 2006 Josh Green, state senator Clayton Hee, state senator Mazie Hirono, incumbent U.S. representative Gary Hooser, director of the state Office of Environmental Quality Control and former state senator
Campaign Hannemann and Gabbard differed on the issue of same-sex marriage. Gabbard was opposed to the Defense of Marriage Act and to a proposed Hawaii state constitutional amendment that would define marriage as between a woman and a man, while Hannemann supported DOMA. Gabbard had previously opposed same-sex marriage, but during the primary campaign, promised to work to repeal DOMA and co-sponsor the Respect for Marriage act. Voters initially doubted the sincerity of her new views on the issue.
Gabbard filed a 270-page complaint against Hannemann's spending, saying that his campaign broke campaign finance laws by failing to report 2012 travel and polling expenses and improperly dealt with Hanneman's salary from a tourism association.
Candidates Marx, Gabbard, and Kia'aina debated on June 5, and Marx, Gabbard, Kia'aina and Hannemann debated in early July.
Gabbard's ratings in the polls increased steadily and Hannemann's dropped throughout the primary campaign; as of August 6, she was leading against Hanneman 49% to 29%.
Endorsements Gabbard received endorsements from the Sierra Club, Women Under Forty PAC, Emily's List, VoteVets and MauiTime.
Primary results On August 11, Gabbard defeated Hanneman by twenty points. The Honolulu Star-Advertiser described her win as the "improbable rise from a distant underdog to victory". Gabbard credited grassroots support as the reason for her come-from-behind win in the primary.
Aftermath Gabbard decided to resign her seat on the City Council, stating that she wanted to prevent the cost of a separate special election, and resigned on August 16.
Republican primary Candidates Nominee Kawika Crowley, handyman
Eliminated in primary Matthew DiGeronimo, entrepreneur, motivational and business speaker, radio talk show host and former Navy officer
Declined Duke Aiona, former lieutenant governor of Hawaii Jonah Kaauwai, former chairman of the Hawaii Republican Party
Primary results
General election Endorsements
Predictions SourceRankingAs of The Cook Political Report November 5, 2012 Rothenberg November 2, 2012 Roll Call November 4, 2012 Sabato's Crystal Ball November 5, 2012 NY Times November 4, 2012RCP November 4, 2012The Hill November 4, 2012
Results
References
External links State of Hawaii, Office of Elections official site Primary election results United States House of Representatives elections in Hawaii, 2012 at Ballotpedia Hawaii U.S. House at OurCampaigns.com Campaign contributions for U.S. Congressional races in Hawaii at OpenSecrets Outside spending at the Sunlight Foundation