United States Senate election in Hawaii, 2010

United States Senate election in Hawaii, 2010

2004 ← November 2, 2010 → 2014

Nominee Daniel Inouye Campbell Cavasso Party Democratic Republican Popular vote 277,228 79,939 Percentage 74.8% 21.6%

County results

U.S. Senator before election Daniel Inouye Democratic Elected U.S. Senator Daniel Inouye Democratic

Elections in Hawaii
Federal government Presidential elections 1992 1996 2000 2004 2008 2012 Presidential caucuses Democratic 2008 Republican 2008 2012 U.S. Senate elections 1976 1982 1988 1992 1994 1998 2000 2004 2006 2010 2012 2016 U.S. House elections 2002 2004 2006 2008 2010 2012 2014 Special elections to U.S. Congress Senate, 1990 2nd district, 2002-2003 1st district, 2010 Senate, 2014
State government Gubernatorial elections 1959 1962 1966 1970 1974 1978 1982 1986 1990 1994 1998 2002 2006 2010 State Senate elections 2012 State House of Representatives elections 2012
Ballot measures 1998 Amendment 2
Honolulu Mayoral elections 2010 2012

The 2010 United States Senate election in Hawaii took place on November 2, 2010 concurrently with elections to the United States Senate in other states as well as elections to the United States House of Representatives and various state and local elections. The primary elections were held on September 18, 2010. Incumbent Democrat U.S. Senator and President pro tempore Daniel Inouye won re-election to his ninth and final term. Inouye died two years into his ninth term on December 17, 2012.

Background

Hawaii last elected a Republican Senator in 1970, and its current delegation to the United States Congress currently consists entirely of Democrats. Democrats have also won Hawaii's electoral votes in every presidential election since Ronald Reagan's landslide election in 1984. The exceptions at the time were then-Governor Linda Lingle (who was serving her second and final term) and then-U.S. Representative Charles Djou, both of whom are Republicans.

Democratic primary

Candidates

• Daniel Inouye, incumbent U.S. Senator
• Andy Woerner, businessman

Results

Democratic primary results
Party		Candidate	Votes	Percentage
	Democratic	Daniel Inouye (incumbent)	188,400	88.3%
	Democratic	Andy Woerner	25,016	11.7%
Totals			213,416	100%

Republican primary

Candidates

• Campbell Cavasso, former State Representative
• Eddie Pirkowski, businessman and U.S. Senate candidate in the 2006 primary
• John Roco

Results

Republican primary results
Party		Candidate	Votes	Percentage
	Republican	Campbell Cavasso	21,865	66.7%
	Republican	John Roco	7,190	21.9%
	Republican	Eddie Pirkowski	3,744	11.4%
Totals			32,790	100%

General election

Candidates

• Democratic: Daniel Inouye
• Republican: Campbell Cavasso
• Green: Jim Brewer
• Libertarian: Lloyd Mallan
• Independent: Jeff Jarrett

Predictions

Source	Ranking	As of
Cook Political Report	Solid D	October 22, 2010
Rothenberg	Safe D	October 15, 2010
Swing State Project	Safe D[citation needed]
RealClearPolitics	Safe D	October 22, 2010
Sabato's Crystal Ball	Safe D	October 21, 2010
CQ Politics	Safe D	October 22, 2010

Campaign

The death of longtime U.S. Senator Robert C. Byrd allowed Inouye to become the President pro tempore and Chairman of the United States Senate Committee on Appropriations. He has no apologies for bringing home as much federal money as he can, despite Republican insistence that the U.S. government taxes and spends too much, a stance he calls a "nice gimmick." The Maui News has endorsed his re-election.

Cavasso, the 2004 nominee, is running again and won the Republican primary again. He is running on a platform of change and is emphasizing the need for a balanced budget. Inouye, who defeated Cavasso in 2004 by 52 percentage points, released TV ads that refer to him simply as "Dan". The senator is said to be "working" for Hawaii's transportation, high-tech economy, education and other needs.

Polling

Hypothetical polling numbers with John Roco (R) 

Poll source	Date(s) administered	Sample size	Margin of error	Daniel Inouye (D)	John Roco (R)	Other	Undecided
Rasmussen Reports	June 24, 2010	500	± 4.5%	68%	20%	3%	8%

Poll source	Date(s) administered	Sample size	Margin of error	Daniel Inouye (D)	Cam Cavasso (R)	Other	Undecided
Rasmussen Reports	October 13, 2010	500	± 4.5%	53%	40%	3%	4%
Public Policy Polling	October 2–3, 2010	1326	± 2.7%	65%	29%	—	6%

Fundraising

Candidate (party)	Receipts	Disbursements	Cash on hand	Debt
Daniel Inouye (D)	$3,503,323	$3,814,829	$1,506,305	$0
Campbell Cavasso (R)	$252,711	$238,794	$14,385	$126,179
Source: Federal Election Commission

Results

United States Senate election in Hawaii, 2010
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Democratic	Daniel Inouye (incumbent)	277,228	74.81%	-0.70%
	Republican	Cam Cavasso	79,939	21.57%	+0.58%
	Green	Jim Brewer	7,762	2.09%	N/A
	Libertarian	Lloyd Jeffrey Mallen	2,957	0.80%	-0.47%
	Independent	Jeff Jarrett	2,697	0.73%	N/A
Majority			197,289	53.24%
Total votes			370,583	100%
	Democratic hold		Swing

External links

• Hawaii Office of Elections
• U.S. Congress candidates for Hawaii at Project Vote Smart
• Hawaii U.S. Senate from OurCampaigns.com
• Campaign contributions from Open Secrets
• 2010 Hawaii Senate General Election: All Head-to-Head Matchups graph of multiple polls from Pollster.com
• Election 2010: Hawaii Senate from Rasmussen Reports
• Hawaii Senate from Real Clear Politics
• 2010 Hawaii Senate Race from CQ Politics
• Race profile from The New York Times

Official campaign websites

• Campbell Cavasso for U.S. Senate
• Daniel Inouye U.S. Senator
• Jeff Jarrett for Hawaii, US Senate
• Lloyd Mallan for U.S. Senate
• Eddie Pirkowski for U.S. Senate
• John Roco for U.S. Senator
• Andy Woerner for U.S. Senate