Hawaii Senate

Coordinates: 21°18′26.4″N 157°51′26.2″W / 21.307333°N 157.857278°W / 21.307333; -157.857278
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

This is an old revision of this page, as edited by Emk9 (talk | contribs) at 19:11, 20 June 2020 (→‎List of current members: Breene Harimoto died). The present address (URL) is a permanent link to this revision, which may differ significantly from the current revision.

21°18′26.4″N 157°51′26.2″W / 21.307333°N 157.857278°W / 21.307333; -157.857278

Hawaii Senate
Ka ‘Aha Kenekoa
ハワイ州上院
Hawaii State Legislature
Coat of arms or logo
Type
Type
Term limits
None
History
New session started
January 16, 2019
Leadership
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
Seats25
Political groups
Majority
  •   Democratic (24)

Minority

Length of term
4 years
AuthorityArticle 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)
RedistrictingHawaii 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 (excluding the officially nonpartisan Nebraska Legislature).[2] It was the first time since 1980 (when 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
style="background-color:Template:Democratic Party (United States)/meta/color" | style="background-color:Template:Republican Party (United States)/meta/color" |
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 Kai Kahele Dem 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 1] Dem Maui Wailuku, Waiheʻe, Kahului
6 Rosalyn Baker Dem 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 2] 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 Vacant 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
  1. ^ Appointed to seat on January 7, 2013 by Governor Neil Abercrombie after Shan Tsutsui was appointed to be Lieutenant Governor.[4]
  2. ^ Became President of the Senate on December 28, 2012, after Shan Tsutsui was appointed by Governor Neil Abercrombie to be Lieutenant Governor.[5] Ousted as Senate President in unusual mid-year leadership reorganization on May 5, 2015.[6] First Filipina, but second Filipino American, Hawaiʻi Senate President[7][8]
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

  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. ^ Osher, Wendy (January 7, 2013). "Governor Appoints Gilbert Keith-Agaran to Maui Senate Seat". MauiNow.com. Retrieved February 3, 2013.
  5. ^ "State Senate chooses Donna Kim as new president". Honolulu Star-Advertiser. December 28, 2012. Retrieved February 3, 2013.
  6. ^ Dayton, Kevin (May 5, 2015). "Kauai's Kouchi replaces Kim as Senate president". Honolulu Star-Advertiser. Retrieved May 5, 2015.
  7. ^ 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.
  8. ^ "Senator Donna Mercado Kim's Biography". Project Vote Smart. One Common Ground. 2012. Retrieved January 19, 2013.

External links