It’s shaping up to be a long, hot summer in Hawaii politics. Debates have hit the airwaves, candidates are stumping, knocking on doors, attending bon dances and farm fairs, and telling us what they’ll do if elected. They’re doing a lot of talking.

But are they doing enough listening? And are they listening to the voices of the most powerful voting group in Hawaii — voters age 50 and older?

AARP is paying close attention to the issues and concerns raised by Hawaii’s older voters. Based on an electronic survey of our members in July, we’ve released "straight-from-the-members" questions for the upcoming elections. These questions are being posed to candidates for governor, lieutenant governor and every state legislative race up this year. Candidates’ answers in four key issue areas will be posted at www.aarp.org/hi later this month.

So what’s on the minds of our older voters? Jobs and the economy, the doctor shortage, long-term care and taxes are concerns — no surprise to anyone tracking the key challenges facing our communities. What is surprising is how little candidates for state office are saying about how they plan on tackling these issues.

Let’s dig a little deeper. Voters age 50 and older in Hawaii want to know what the candidates will do to jump-start our lagging economy. What’s their plan to create a stronger workforce and bring more job opportunities and higher wages? It’s a common misconception that all AARP members are retirees. The fact is, the recession has hit older workers particularly hard, and if you’re in your 50s and lose your job, finding comparable work for comparable pay is harder than ever. If you are younger than 65, and too young to qualify for Medicare, the loss of a job puts your health insurance at risk as well. Older voters want to know whether candidates will back legislation encouraging employers to train and retain workers of all ages. Will candidates support funding programs for lower-income families who need help finding jobs to provide a better standard of living?

Health care is a big concern of all residents, especially as they get older. Nearly a quarter of state residents say they have skipped a doctor’s visit when they needed one, and more than 40 percent of all neighbor island residents say it’s because the health care service was unavailable in their community. The doctor shortage in Hawaii has been well documented, but solutions are slow in coming. Our members want that to change. They want to know how the candidates plan to address the shortage of primary care physicians — especially in rural and non-urban areas — and what they’ll do to encourage doctors to take more patients under Medicare.

Hawaii residents also want to age with dignity. For many that means staying in their communities. Not only is aging at home the overwhelming preference, it’s almost always more cost effective. On average, a nursing home costs about $115,000 per year and more than $131,000 outside of Honolulu — three times more than it does to provide home and community-based services. Only our wealthiest residents can afford nursing homes. Yet, Hawaii spends 83 percent of its Medicaid long-term care budget on nursing homes and just 17 percent on home and community-based services.

Older voters want to know how the candidates will help Hawaii develop a strong home and community based services infrastructure. They want to know what can be done to support family caregivers. They want to know what candidates will do to make the state’s long-term care system more responsive to the needs of the elderly.

Taxes are a big concern for most of us and residents age 50 plus are no different. Older voters want to know what the candidates’ approach to taxes and the state budget will be. The recession hit us hard and the state is still struggling to pay for basic services. What will the candidates do to address this issue? Will they raise taxes or make further cuts to government services that have already been heavily reduced?

These are not easy election-year issues, and they aren’t meant to be. But right now people are looking for answers, not campaign slogans.

The 50-plus group is the most powerful voting bloc in Hawaii. This year the group will account more than half of all voters in Hawaii, and about one in every five votes cast will be from an AARP member. If the candidates want to know what issues to talk about on the campaign trail, all they have to do is ask, listen and learn from the voters. We did. Our voter guide is straight from our members and it will give the candidates a good head start.