After casting her secret ballot at Kaiser High School in Hawaii Kai, Linda Lingle told Civil Beat she was impressed with the excitement and turnout the caucus generated.

“I’ve been getting reports from friends who are at the various polling places, and everybody is very excited about it,” she told Civil Beat. “When this was first proposed I was not enthusiastic about it. But, over the last few months as I heard from the people who were doing the planning and what they were expecting — and of course as it became clear that Hawaii would be a factor nationally — I have come to think it’s a really great process and involved a lot of people who might not get involved on a local race or a legislative race in their district, this has brought them out. That’s very good — very good for the party, but also very good for the state, because to the extent you have a stronger Republican Party, you have a better chance for a two-party system. And that benefits everybody.”

She said that, as a result of the caucus, she is “certain” that more Republicans will turn out for the general election — not only to vote but also to volunteer and participate in a two-party system.

Asked if she would like to see a Hawaii GOP presidential caucus four years from now, Lingle said, “I do think it’s a good idea. I think it’s especially good this year because Hawaii is a factor in the race. I think if it was already decided, obviously it wouldn’t be as interesting. But people are excited because they know people are waiting on the mainland to hear how they voted.”