The dust has settled on the interesting results from the Hawaii primary election that was announced on August 10. As the state transitions to the general election, we’re seeing predictions about the implications of House Speaker Scott Saiki’s loss to Kim Coco Iwamoto and the removal of yard and fence signs by both winners and losers.
Even this blogger has shared his mana’o on these things recently in an interview on KHON 2, the first time Politics Hawaii with Stan Fichtman has been featured on a broadcast news platform.
As the evaluations continue, another set of activities will happen, more focused on the candidates. From celebrating their wins (or mourning their losses), candidates are also on the move thanking voters for their support. These days even the losers have been seen on the streets thanking voters for their support.
PC: Honolulu City Council website
One person this blogger saw posting about his thank you sign waving was Honolulu Councilmember Augusto “Augie” Tulba, on his Instagram account. It felt like standard fare promotion of a campaign activity, with this one being one of the last considering that he won his race outright, as the incumbent and only candidate on the ballot.
And this is where one of the lesser-discussed storylines of the primary election emerges. The results of the District 9 election, re-electing Tulba, show a rare temperament of the electorate not only in the district but statewide.
That temperament as this humble blogger sees it, is the equivalent of when actress Sally Field received her first Oscar award in 1985. Her acceptance speech has become a pop culture icon in which she said “And I can’t deny the fact that you like me. Right now, you like me! Thank you.”
Boiled down the phrase is typically said in other circles as “You like me, you really like me!”
And District 9, they liked Augie – a lot. Let’s look at the stats.
PC: State of Hawaii Office of Elections
In the primary election, Tulba received over 10,000 votes despite a lower turnout compared to the 2020 general election. He had the lowest percentage of blank votes among the three unopposed Honolulu Council members.
Tulba’s blank votes were even less than Steve Alm, who ran unopposed as the Honolulu City Prosecutor. He received 28.8% blank votes.
What does this mean for Tulba, from this humble blogger’s standpoint? It shows that the constituency seems pleased with his performance. A resident of the area noted to this writer that they saw Tulba all the time in the district, doing things on the ground in the area. Tulba also heavily promotes his outreach work, posting on his Instagram account frequently activities in the district, sometimes self-videoing while in the area.
Even if you remove the other things that keep Tulba in the minds of people – the various shows he performs in and his morning radio show – his all-in investment in working in the district for the people has yielded impressive results that many politicians only could wish for on a good election cycle.
And, as impressive as that is, another even more impressive feat is that Tulba has kept a healthy amount of “goodwill” in the community four years on. Typically, a popular candidate on their first successful run is voted in with a dose of goodwill to their name and reputation. As service in office starts and decisions are made, one way or the other, goodwill erodes. This is a factor in the decision to run again for the same office candidate…whether the voters still like him years on.
For Tulba, that goodwill didn’t erode. But because of the way this election was – a lower number of voters participating than in the past, with him running unopposed – the true measure of his goodwill may only be seen when, or if, he chooses after this term to run for higher office.
As the general election approaches, it will be interesting to see how Tulba’s widespread goodwill and dedication continue to shape the political landscape in Hawaii through his current activities and what he chooses to support going forward. This blogger will be watching.
Politics Hawaii with Stan Fichtman is a Society of Professional Journalists award-winning publication, created by the works of both Stan Fichtman (creator, writer, publisher) and Brandon Dela Cruz (creator of the idea, and the website) See more articles at www.politicshawaii.com. We are also featured on Hawaii Free Press and All Hawaii News news aggregators