2002 Hawaii gubernatorial election

For related races, see 2002 United States gubernatorial elections.

2002 Hawaii gubernatorial election

November 5, 2002

Nominee Linda Lingle Mazie Hirono Party Republican Democratic Running mate Duke Aiona Matt Matsunaga Popular vote 197,009 179,647 Percentage 51.56% 47.01%

County results Lingle:      50–60% Hirono:      50–60%

Governor before election Ben Cayetano Democratic Elected Governor Linda Lingle Republican

The 2002 Hawaii gubernatorial election was held on November 5, 2002, to select the governor of Hawaii. Incumbent Democratic Governor of Hawaii Ben Cayetano was term-limited and therefore could not run for re-election. Former Maui Mayor Linda Lingle, who had narrowly lost the 1998 election, was nominated once again by the Republicans while Lieutenant Governor Mazie Hirono earned the Democratic nomination in a tight race. Lingle and Hirono duked it out in a hard-fought campaign, with Hirono's campaign crippled by allegations of corruption within the Hawaii Democratic Party and many voters desiring a change. Ultimately Lingle defeated Hirono in a close election, making her the first Republican governor of Hawaii elected since 1959 and the state's first-ever female governor. She was the first white person to be elected governor of the state since 1970. Lingle and Hirono faced off again in Hawaii's 2012 U.S. Senate election; Hirono won that race and thus became the first female U.S. senator in Hawaii history.

Democratic primary

Candidates

• Mazie Hirono, Lieutenant Governor of Hawaii
• Ed Case, Majority Leader of the Hawaii House of Representatives
• D. G. Anderson, 1982 and 1986 Republican nominee for Governor of Hawaii, former Hawaii state senator
• George Nitta Jr., radio personality
• Art P. Reyes, perennial candidate
• Joe Fernandez, school bus driver

Results

Democratic primary results

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Democratic	Mazie Hirono	76,709	41.24
	Democratic	Ed Case	74,096	39.84
	Democratic	D. G. Anderson	33,384	17.95
	Democratic	George Nitta, Jr.	747	0.40
	Democratic	Art P. Reyes	568	0.31
	Democratic	Joe Fernandez	491	0.26
Total votes			185,995	100.00

Republican primary

Candidates

• Linda Lingle, former Mayor of Maui, 1998 Republican nominee for Governor of Hawaii
• John Carroll, former Hawaii state representative
• Crystal Young

Results

Republican primary results

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Republican	Linda Lingle	70,808	89.77
	Republican	John Carroll	7,616	9.66
	Republican	Crystal Young	454	0.58
Total votes			78,878	100.00

General election

Campaign

Lingle was critical of the way that Hirono had handled education and economic issues as lieutenant governor; in a TV spot premiered by the Lingle campaign in September, the Republican noted that "Reading scores are now among the worst in the nation. We rank last in jobs creation and first in poverty increase" and argued that Hirono bore part of the blame. Hirono responded that low reading scores could be attributed to the fact that many Hawaiian students — such as Hirono, herself an immigrant from Japan — were learning English as a second language. She also pointed to legislation which she had supported to "improve teacher quality" and boost test scores, and commented that "I'd like to know what Linda has done" to further the cause.

Predictions

Source	Ranking	As of
The Cook Political Report	Tossup	October 31, 2002
Sabato's Crystal Ball	Lean R (flip)	November 4, 2002

Results

Hawaii gubernatorial election, 2002

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Republican	Linda Lingle	197,009	51.56%	+2.74%
	Democratic	Mazie Hirono	179,647	47.01%	−3.09%
	Natural Law	Bu Laʻia Hill	2,561	0.67%
	Libertarian	Tracy Ryan	1,364	0.36%	−0.72%
	Independent	Jim Brewer	1,147	0.30%
	Independent	Daniel Cunningham	382	0.10%
Majority			17,362	4.54%	+3.25%
Turnout			382,110
	Republican gain from Democratic		Swing

Counties that flipped from Democratic to Republican

• Honolulu

External links

Official campaign websites (Archived)

• Linda Lingle for Governor
• Mazie Hirono for Governor