Why are you best suited for the job? And why do you want the job?

Born and raised in this district, it’s been an honor to serve our community in the state House for the past six years. I’m running for the state Senate to build a Hawai‘i where local families can thrive and call home for generations. Our district deserves a senator who will actively engage the community and the legislative process to address the challenges we face today. I believe my experience in the House, involvement in the community, and vision for the future make me a strong candidate.

What is the biggest issue facing your district, and what is the first thing you would do to address it in the first six months after being elected?

The issue of Hawai‘i’s high cost of living continues to be a priority for my district. Going into the 2027 session, I will introduce legislation to address this issue: launching a paid family leave program, developing housing on underutilized state property, and increasing access to after-school programs. Through my work in the House, I know what it takes to engage and coordinate with community, industry, and government stakeholders to bring these ideas to reality.

Here’s one question from your constituents: Do you support maintaining a monopoly for interisland shipping?

Interisland shipping in Hawai‘i, like other large-scale utility companies, are natural monopolies due to the massive upfront costs necessary to operate and maintain their network. I would welcome any local company to provide cost effective and responsible interisland shipping services.

What do you think were the most important bills to come out of the 2026 Legislature? What failed that should have passed? What passed that you wish had failed?

SB 3125, the income tax bill, was crucial to maintaining previous tax cuts and ultimately made changes to other areas of Hawaii’s tax policy to pass the budget. There were many other bills like HB 2310, SB 2057, and SB 903 that responded to actions taken by the federal government on SNAP benefits, immigration enforcement, and funding for Native Hawaiian programs. A major win for Hawai‘i teachers was HB 1890, which established salary step increases for qualified teachers.

The 2026 session was also overshadowed by an issue of public trust: $35,000 in the brown paper bag given to an “influential” state lawmaker. What do you think the Legislature needs to do going forward to rebuild public confidence in state government?

As an individual legislator, I’ve worked to earn my community’s trust by being present and responsive to their concerns or questions. As an institution I believe legislators should become full-time positions and legislative sessions should be extended to incorporate transparency measures. This would include extending the 48-hour notice for hearings to give the public and stakeholders a reasonable time to submit informed testimony on bills.

In recent years, Hawai’i has experienced a series of damaging and dangerous weather events that have exposed weaknesses in our planning, preparation and response. What could you as a lawmaker do to help your district be better prepared?

With the rollout of the “Green Fee,” the Legislature began redirecting revenue towards maintenance and restoration efforts for flood mitigation infrastructure. I would extend this to the Ala Wai watershed. In addition to consistently maintaining our waterways and public spaces to prevent flooding, I will also work with my neighborhoods to develop an emergency response plan. This will ensure the community is prepared for and able to mobilize properly when faced with a disaster.

What would you do in office to address the here and now of climate change? And how would you address the costs to taxpayers, property owners and businesses to adapt?

I believe revenue generated by the “Green Fee” should be redirected towards projects that maintain the environment and relevant infrastructure. This would include shoreline mitigation, upkeep of watersheds, and repair and maintenance for public infrastructure. I would also consider expanding tax credits to incentivize home and business owners to renovate their properties against natural disasters. In the long run, this will reduce their insurance premiums and protect their property.

Over 3,000 bills are introduced every session and there is always frantic horsetrading in the final days of session. Do you think there should be a limit on the number of bills introduced to enable more meaningful debate?

Yes, I believe there should be reasonable limits to the number of bill introduced. As a member of the state House, I found the limit helpful to narrow my bills to those that I believed were ready and or deserved the debate. It’s also true that I sometimes found the limit too restricting and prevented meaningful work on some bills with potential.

Hawaiʻi lawmakers are often in the dark about how much a piece of legislation will cost because the Aloha State is the only one in the nation that doesn’t require a fiscal analysis for bills. Should lawmakers be forced to put a realistic price tag on the legislation they introduce?

While each bill having a fiscal analysis would be ideal, I am concerned with its administrative impact. If a mandatory fiscal analysis is implemented, the Senate and House would have to hire a team of analysts to review each bill, which would require additional time for analysts to submit accurate fiscal notes. Rather than a blanket mandate, I believe fiscal analysis should be done by request for specific measures that require them.

There are no term limits for state legislators in Hawaiʻi, so incumbents tend to win. Would you seek to change that? Why or why not?

As a candidate challenging an incumbent, I hope my election can prove that incumbency is not definite. Even if we were to have term limits, I would recommend these limits be fairly long to allow newly elected officials to learn and understand the institution and subject matters. Limiting term limits to 8 or even 10 years discourages long-term planning and decision-making for the Legislature.

What would you do to help improve the state’s public school system?

To realize systemic improvements to Hawaiʻi DOE, I will work with BOE, DOE leadership, and HSTA to identify the current system’s vulnerabilities. After an evaluation, I would work with the stakeholders to make changes that ensure schools can provide students with a quality education necessary for them to succeed in the workplace. I will also continue to work with principals and teachers in my school district to secure funding for needed programs and capital improvements for each school.

Hawaiʻi is heavily reliant on tourism. What would you propose to diversify Hawaiʻi’s economy?

I would work with our business community and regulators to reform Hawaii’s business environment. Hawaiʻi consistently ranks low on rankings for business-friendly states. Rather than government prescribing what industries to grow, we should create a business ecosystem that encourages entrepreneurship and innovation. One program I would support to achieve this would be Hawaiʻi Small Business Innovation Research grant program that gives grants to local start-up companies.

An estimated 60% of Hawaii residents are struggling to get by. It’s a problem that reaches far beyond low-income folks and into the middle class, which is disappearing. What would you do to help?

The largest contributing factor to Hawaiʻi’s cost of living is the cost of housing. To reduce the cost of housing, I would increase the housing supply by developing housing on underutilized state properties and encourage housing development along primary transportation corridors. Separately, to help working families, I will continue working on passing a paid family leave insurance program to help working individuals balance their careers with caring for loved ones in need.