2018 Hawaii gubernatorial election

For related races, see 2018 United States gubernatorial elections.

The 2018 Hawaii gubernatorial election took place on November 6, 2018, to elect the governor of Hawaii and lieutenant governor of Hawaii.

2018 Hawaii gubernatorial election

← 2014 November 6, 2018 2022 →

Nominee David Ige Andria Tupola Party Democratic Republican Running mate Josh Green Marissa Kerns Popular vote 244,934 131,719 Percentage 62.67% 33.70%

County results Ige:      60–70%      70–80%

Governor before election David Ige Democratic Elected Governor David Ige Democratic

After prevailing in an intensely competitive primary election on August 11, 2018, incumbent Democratic governor David Ige ran successfully for re-election to a second term in office, considerably improving on his margin of victory from 2014, in which he only won a plurality.

Republicans Andria Tupola and Marissa Kerns headed one of two 2018 major-party gubernatorial tickets that included two women. The other such ticket had Idaho's 2018 Democratic nominees for governor and lieutenant governor, Paulette Jordan and Kristin Collum.^[1] This was Hawaii's only gubernatorial election since 1994 without Linda Lingle or Duke Aiona as the Republican nominee, as well as the first since the 1990 election in which the winner was of a different party than the incumbent president. As of 2023, this election was the only time since 1998 that an incumbent Democratic governor of Hawaii was re-elected.

Democratic primary

Governor

Candidates

Declared

• Ernest Caravalho, Democratic Party of Hawaii, chair, House District 29^[2]
• Colleen Hanabusa, U.S. representative and candidate for the U.S. Senate in 2014^[3][4][5]
• David Ige, incumbent governor^[3][6]
• Wendell Kaehuaea, security guard and perennial candidate^[7]
• Van Tanabe

Withdrew

• Clayton Hee, former state senator and candidate for lieutenant governor in 2014^[8][9]

Debates

Dates	Location	Ige	Hanabusa	Link
July 6, 2018	Honolulu, Hawaii	Participant	Participant	Full debate – YouTube

Endorsements

Colleen Hanabusa

Individuals

• Ben Cayetano, former governor of Hawai'i^[10]
• Tulsi Gabbard, congresswoman for HI-2^[11]
• Shan Tsutsui, former lieutenant governor of Hawai'i^[12]

Organizations

• Hawaii Regional Council of Carpenters^[13]
• Hawaii Government Employees Association^[13]
• State of Hawaii Organization of Police Officers^[13]
• International Union of Operating Engineers^[13]
• International Longshore and Warehouse Union^[13]
• Hawaii Building and Construction Trades Council^[13]
• University of Hawaii Professional Assembly^[13]
• International Union of Painters and Associated Trades^[13]
• Laborers' International Union of North America^[13]
• Hawaii Fire Fighters Association^[13]
• Hawaii State AFL-CIO^[13]
• Seafarers International Union^[13]

David Ige

Individuals

• Harry Kim, Mayor of Hawai'i County^[10]

Organizations

• Hawaii State Teachers Association^[13]
• United Public Workers^[13]
• Unite Here Local 5^[13]
• Ironworkers Union^[13]
• Plasterers & Cement Masons Union^[13]
• Hawaii Association of Public Accountants^[13]

Polling

Poll source	Date(s) administered	Sample size	Margin of error	David Ige	Colleen Hanabusa	Clayton Hee	Undecided
Merriman River Group	July 19–21, 2018	871	± 3.3%	43%	34%	–	18%
Mason-Dixon	July 6–11, 2018	494	± 4.5%	44%	40%	–	16%
QMark Research (D-Hanabusa)	June 21 – July 6, 2018	518	± 4.4%	31%	57%	–	11%
QMark Research (D-Hanabusa)	April 21 – May 7, 2018	888	± 3.4%	23%	52%	6%	19%
Merriman River Group	May 3–5, 2018	707	± 3.7%	31%	37%	11%	16%
Mason-Dixon	March 13–18, 2018	498	± 4.5%	27%	47%	11%	15%

Results

Results by county:

  Ige—50–60%

  Ige—40–50%

  Hanabusa—40–50%

  No data

Democratic primary results^[14]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Democratic	David Ige (incumbent)	124,572	51.4
	Democratic	Colleen Hanabusa	107,631	44.4
	Democratic	Ernest Caravalho	5,662	2.3
	Democratic	Wendell Ka'ehu'ae'a	2,298	0.9
	Democratic	Richard Kim	1,576	0.6
	Democratic	Van Tanabe	775	0.3
Total votes			242,514	100.0

Lieutenant governor

Candidates

Declared

• Bernard Carvalho, Mayor of Kauai County^[15]
• Will Espero, State Senate Vice President and candidate for HI-01 in 2014^[16]
• Josh Green, state senator^[4][17][16]
• Kim Coco Iwamoto, former state Board of Education member^[18]
• Jill Tokuda, State Senator^[3]

Withdrew

• Alan Arakawa, Mayor of Maui County^[19] (running for Maui County Council)^[20]

Endorsements

Kim Coco Iwamoto

Organizations

• UNITE Here Local 5^[21]

Individuals

• Daniel Foley, attorney in Baehr v. Miike and retired judge of the Hawaii Intermediate Court of Appeals^[22]

Jill Tokuda

Organizations

• University of Hawaii Professional Assembly^[23]

Polling

Poll source	Date(s) administered	Sample size	Margin of error	Bernard Carvalho	Will Espero	Josh Green	Kim Coco Iwamoto	Jill Tokuda	Undecided
Merriman River Group	July 19–21, 2018	871	± 3.3%	13%	5%	31%	10%	17%	26%
Mason-Dixon	July 6–11, 2018	494	± 4.5%	14%	6%	34%	10%	14%	22%
Merriman River Group	May 3–5, 2018	707	± 3.7%	19%	8%	16%	14%	11%	32%
Mason-Dixon	March 13–18, 2018	498	± 4.5%	14%	9%	19%	5%	12%	41%

Results

Results by county:

  Green—50–60%

  Green—30–40%

  Tokuda—30–40%

  Carvalho—40–50%

  No data

Democratic primary results^[14]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Democratic	Josh Green	74,845	31.4
	Democratic	Jill Tokuda	68,124	28.6
	Democratic	Bernard Carvalho	45,825	19.2
	Democratic	Kim Coco Iwamoto	34,243	14.3
	Democratic	Will Espero	15,463	6.5
Total votes			238,500	100.0

Republican primary

Governor

Candidates

Declared

• John Carroll, former state representative, and former state senator^[7][24]
• Ray L'Heureux, president and chairman of the Education Institute of Hawaii, former assistant superintendent, and retired U.S. Marine colonel^[25]
• Andria Tupola, Minority Leader of the Hawaii House of Representatives^[26][24]

Withdrew

• Bob McDermott, state representative and nominee for HI-02 in 2002^[27][28]

Endorsements

Andria Tupola

Newspapers

• Maui Time^[29]

Polling

Poll source	Date(s) administered	Sample size	Margin of error	John Carroll	Raymond L'Heureux	Andria Tupola	Undecided
Merriman River Group	July 19–21, 2018	219	± 6.6%	22%	4%	39%	22%
Mason-Dixon	July 6–11, 2018	143	± 8.4%	28%	8%	41%	23%
Mason-Dixon	March 13–18, 2018	134	± 8.6%	40%	–	28%	32%

Results

Results by county:

  Tupola—50–60%

  Tupola—40–50%

  No data

Republican primary results^[14]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Republican	Andria Tupola	17,297	55.5
	Republican	John Carroll	10,974	35.2
	Republican	Ray L'Heureux	2,885	9.3
Total votes			31,156	100.0

Lieutenant governor

Candidates

Declared

• Marissa Kerns
• Steve Lipscomb
• Jeremy Low

Polling

Poll source	Date(s) administered	Sample size	Margin of error	Marissa Kerns	Jeremy Low	Undecided
Merriman River Group	July 19–21, 2018	219	± 6.6%	26%	20%	54%

Results

Results by county:

  Kerns—30–40%

  Lipscomb—30–40%

  No data

Republican primary results^[14]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Republican	Marissa Dipasupil Kerns	9,758	35.4
	Republican	Steve Lipscomb	9,543	34.7
	Republican	Jeremy Low	8,232	29.9
Total votes			27,533	100.0

Green primary

Governor

Candidates

Declared

• Jim Brewer

Results

Results by county:

  Brewer—100%

  No data

Green primary results^[14]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Green	Jim Brewer	454	100.0
Total votes			454	100.0

Lieutenant governor

Candidates

Declared

• Renee Ing

Results

Results by county:

  Ing—100%

  No data

Green primary results^[14]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Green	Renee Ing	444	100.0
Total votes			444	100.0

Nonpartisan primary

Governor

Candidates

Declared

• Selina Blackwell
• Link El
• Terrence Teruya

Results

Results by county:

  Teruya—50–60%

  Blackwell—40–50%

  Blackwell—50–60%

  No data

Nonpartisan primary results^[14]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Nonpartisan	Terrence Teruya	543	47.7
	Nonpartisan	Selina Blackwell	497	43.7
	Nonpartisan	Link El	98	8.6
Total votes			1,138	100.0

Lieutenant governor

Candidates

Declared

• Ernest Magaoay
• Paul Robotti

Results

Results by county:

  Robotti—50–60%

  Magaoay—50–60%

  No Data

Nonpartisan primary results^[14]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Nonpartisan	Paul Robotti	536	50.6
	Nonpartisan	Ernest Magaoay	523	49.4
Total votes			1,059	100.0

General election

Predictions

Source	Ranking	As of
The Cook Political Report[30]	Safe D	October 26, 2018
The Washington Post[31]	Safe D	November 5, 2018
FiveThirtyEight[32]	Safe D	November 5, 2018
Rothenberg Political Report[33]	Safe D	November 1, 2018
Sabato's Crystal Ball[34]	Safe D	November 5, 2018
RealClearPolitics[35]	Safe D	November 4, 2018
Daily Kos[36]	Safe D	November 5, 2018
Fox News[37][lower-alpha 1]	Likely D	November 5, 2018
Politico[38]	Safe D	November 5, 2018
Governing[39]	Safe D	November 5, 2018

Notes

1. The Fox News Midterm Power Rankings uniquely does not contain a category for Safe/Solid races

Debates

Dates	Location	Ige	Tupola	Link
October 29, 2018	Honolulu, Hawaii	Participant	Participant	Full debate – C-SPAN

Polling

Poll source	Date(s) administered	Sample size	Margin of error	David Ige (D)	Andria Tupola (R)	Undecided
Merriman River Group	October 8–12, 2018	961	± 4.3%	52%	31%	11%
Mason-Dixon	July 6–11, 2018	800	± 3.5%	57%	34%	9%
Mason-Dixon	March 13–18, 2018	800	± 3.5%	51%	24%	25%

Poll source	Date(s) administered	Sample size	Margin of error	David Ige (D)	John Carroll (R)	Undecided
Mason-Dixon	July 6–11, 2018	800	± 3.5%	62%	23%	15%
Mason-Dixon	March 13–18, 2018	800	± 3.5%	52%	27%	21%

Poll source	Date(s) administered	Sample size	Margin of error	David Ige (D)	Raymond L'Heureux (R)	Undecided
Mason-Dixon	July 6–11, 2018	800	± 3.5%	67%	20%	13%

Poll source	Date(s) administered	Sample size	Margin of error	Colleen Hanabusa (D)	John Carroll (R)	Undecided
Mason-Dixon	July 6–11, 2018	800	± 3.5%	51%	31%	18%
Mason-Dixon	March 13–18, 2018	800	± 3.5%	57%	31%	12%

Poll source	Date(s) administered	Sample size	Margin of error	Colleen Hanabusa (D)	Andria Tupola (R)	Undecided
Mason-Dixon	July 6–11, 2018	800	± 3.5%	48%	35%	17%
Mason-Dixon	March 13–18, 2018	800	± 3.5%	56%	28%	16%

Poll source	Date(s) administered	Sample size	Margin of error	Colleen Hanabusa (D)	Raymond L'Heureux (R)	Undecided
Mason-Dixon	July 6–11, 2018	800	± 3.5%	58%	26%	16%

Hypothetical polling

with David Ige and John Carroll

with David Ige and Raymond L'Heureux

with Colleen Hanabusa and John Carroll

with Colleen Hanabusa and Andria Tupola

with Colleen Hanabusa and Raymond L'Heureux

Results

Hawaii gubernatorial election, 2018^[40]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Democratic	David Ige (incumbent)	244,934	62.67%	13.22
	Republican	Andria Tupola	131,719	33.70%	3.38
	Green	Jim Brewer	10,123	2.59%	N/A
	Nonpartisan	Terrence Teruya	4,067	1.04%	N/A
Total votes			390,843	100.00%	N/A
	Democratic hold

By congressional district

Ige won both congressional districts.^[41]

District	Ige	Tupola	Representative
1st	64%	33%	Colleen Hanabusa (117th Congress)
			Ed Case (118th Congress)
2nd	61%	35%	Tulsi Gabbard

References

1. Trahant, Mark (August 19, 2018). "Idaho is no longer safe for Republicans; Paulette Jordan trails by 8 points". Indian Country Today. Retrieved December 2, 2019 – via News Maven.
2. "Ernest Caravalho". Ballotpedia. Retrieved July 6, 2018.
3. Singer, Jeff (June 6, 2017). "Why several Hawaii Democrats are mulling primary bids against Gov. David Ige". Daily Kos. Retrieved June 6, 2017.
4. Hooser, Gary (August 9, 2017). "Brace yourselves, primaries are coming". The Garden Island. Archived from the original on August 15, 2017. Retrieved August 22, 2017.
5. "U.S. Rep. Hanabusa announces plans to run for governor". Hawaii News Now. September 1, 2017. Retrieved September 1, 2017.
6. Callis, Tom (January 3, 2016). "Green saving up for run at higher office". Hawaii Tribune-Herald. Archived from the original on November 16, 2016. Retrieved November 15, 2016.
7. Cook Lauer, Nancy (January 6, 2018). "Familiar candidate aims for governor". West Hawaii Today. Archived from the original on January 6, 2018. Retrieved January 7, 2018.
8. Blair, Chad (February 27, 2018). "Former Sen. Clayton Hee Is Running For Governor". Honolulu Civil Beat. Retrieved February 28, 2018.
9. Blair, Chad (June 4, 2018). "Clayton Hee Withdraws From Hawaii Governor's Race". Honolulu Civil Beat. Retrieved June 8, 2018.
10. "Ige's New Campaign Ad Features Endorsement From Mayor Kim". Big Island Video News. July 28, 2018. Retrieved November 28, 2021.
11. Blair, Chad (January 24, 2018). "Gabbard Shakes Up Governor's Race By Endorsing Hanabusa". Honolulu Civil Beat. Retrieved November 28, 2021.
12. HNN Staff (March 27, 2018). "Former lieutenant governor endorses Ige challenger". Hawaii News Now. Retrieved November 28, 2021.
13. Eagle, Nathan (July 11, 2018). "Why Union Support Matters In The Hawaii Governor's Racev". Honolulu Civil Beat. Retrieved November 28, 2021.
14. "Primary Election 2018 -State of Hawaii – Statewide" (PDF). Hawaii Office of Elections. Retrieved August 12, 2018.
15. "Kauai Mayor Bernard Carvalho Jr. to run for lieutenant governor". KHON 2. October 26, 2017. Retrieved November 5, 2017.
16. "Sens. Green, Espero announce runs for lieutenant governor in 2018". Hawaii News Now. September 1, 2017. Retrieved September 1, 2017.
17. Cook Lauer, Nancy (June 13, 2017). "3 show interest in Green's seat as senator eyes lieutenant gov bid". Hawaii Tribune-Herald. Archived from the original on August 23, 2017. Retrieved August 22, 2017.
18. "Kim Coco Iwamoto announces bid for Lieutenant Governor". Island News KITV 4. November 5, 2017. Archived from the original on February 8, 2018. Retrieved November 5, 2017.
19. "Maui Mayor Arakawa says he plans to run for lieutenant governor". Hawaii News Now. May 26, 2017. Retrieved November 5, 2017.
20. Pignataro, Anthony (April 3, 2018). "Maui Mayor Alan Arakawa to hold $1,000/person fundraiser at swanky Waikiki restaurant". MauiTime. Retrieved April 15, 2018.
21. Cocke, Sophie (June 13, 2018). "Local 5 endorses Kim Coco Iwamoto for lieutenant governor". Honolulu Civil Beat. Retrieved November 28, 2021.
22. Foley, Daniel (March 30, 2018). "Campaign Corner: Kim Coco Iwamoto The Only True Progressive LG Candidate". Honolulu Civil Beat. Honolulu Civil Beat. Retrieved December 29, 2022.
23. "UHPA Endorses Jill Tokuda for Lt. Governor".
24. Daverta, Jobeth (January 21, 2018). "Hawaii minority leader Rep. Andria Tupola enters gubernatorial race". Hawaii News Now. Retrieved January 26, 2018.
25. Dible, Max (April 14, 2018). "Republican candidates for state office stump in Kona". West Hawaii Today.
26. "The Hawaii Republican Party has a new chair". Retrieved April 5, 2018.
27. Nagaoka, Ashley (May 12, 2017). "McDermott touts leadership, officialy [sic] enters 2018 race for governor". Hawaii News Now. Retrieved May 13, 2017.
28. Dayton, Kevin (August 29, 2017). "Rep. McDermott withdraws from governor's race". Honolulu Star-Advertiser. Retrieved August 30, 2017.
29. Beers, Axel (August 2, 2018). "MauiTime endorses Andria Tupola for governor (Republican) in 2018 Primary Election". Maui Time.
30. "2018 Governor Race Ratings for October 26, 2018". The Cook Political Report. Retrieved April 10, 2021.
31. "The Washington Post's gubernatorial race ratings". The Washington Post. October 16, 2018.
32. "2018 Governor Forecast | FiveThirtyEight". FiveThirtyEight. Retrieved October 17, 2018.
33. "2018 Gubernatorial Ratings | Inside Elections". insideelections.com. Retrieved November 15, 2017.
34. "Larry J. Sabato's Crystal Ball – 2018 Governor". www.centerforpolitics.org. Retrieved November 15, 2017.
35. "2018 Governor Races". RealClearPolitics. October 9, 2018.
36. "2018 Governor Race Ratings". Daily Kos. June 5, 2018.
37. "2018 Midterm Power Ranking". Fox News.
38. "Politico Race Ratings". Politico.
39. "2018 Governor Elections: As November Nears, More Governors' Races Become Tossups". www.governing.com. Archived from the original on October 21, 2018. Retrieved July 18, 2018.
40. "General Election 2018 Final Summary Report" (PDF). State of Hawaii. November 6, 2018. Retrieved December 20, 2018.
41. "DRA 2020". Daves Redistricting. Retrieved August 18, 2024.

External links

• Candidates at Vote Smart
• Candidates at Ballotpedia

Official campaign websites

• David Ige (D) for Governor (archived)
• Terrence Teruya (NP) for Governor (archived)
• Andria Tupola (R) for Governor (archived)

Official lieutenant gubernatorial campaign websites

• Josh Green (D) for Lieutenant Governor (archived)
• Marissa Kerns (R) for Lieutenant Governor (archived)