Four Democrats and two Republicans are vying for the seat in state House District 41 (Waipahu, Village Park and Waikele) being vacated by Jon Riki Karamatsu, who held the job for eight years but is running for lieutenant governor.

Two Democrats, Cory Chun and Ty Cullen, are Waipahu Neighborhood Board members.

Fernie Nicolas was a Kalihi/Palama Neighborhood Board member from 1987 to 1993. Leatrice Grantham is seeking public office for the first time. Both are Democrats.

On the Republican side, Carl Wong and Angel Cordero are seeking election.

The four candidates in the Democratic primary said development, the rail transit plan, crime, traffic safety, schools and jobs are their priorities for the two-year term.

"The primary issue facing my district is to ensure that long-term infrastructure projects such as Hoopili, Koa Ridge and mass transit are implemented well," said Cullen, 29, program coordinator for Hale Kipa Inc.

Through the Waipahu Town Plan and other development planning efforts, "Waipahu leaders have shown that we have the ability to work together to build our community well," Cullen said.

Cullen also said the state needs to prioritize services and craft a balanced budget.

"Essential services such as education, transportation infrastructure and public health and safety must have the resources they need," he said. "Then if we need to fund them, do we operate a smaller state government, privatize or do we raise taxes?"

Chun, also a Waipahu Neighborhood Board member, said it is important to get out information to help people who are out of work.

"I think that the programs are there," said Chun, 32, noting efforts such as the city’s Oahu WorkLinks. "It’s just a matter of getting the message out to the people looking for jobs."

Chun, an attorney, said Waipahu will be an early "test bed" for the rail line, and he wants to ensure appropriate development takes place around it.

"There’s been a lot of talk how it’s going to bring businesses back to the area, and I think if it (the development) is done right, then other communities on the line will be like, ‘Wow, I want what Waipahu has,’ and that’s kind of how I want to see it happen — where it’s done right," Chun said.

Grantham, 45, said crime, including break-ins, are concerns in newer subdivisions in Waikele, and she would seek more police patrols for the area.

Her biggest statewide issue is the civil unions bill, she said.

"I can’t sit on the fence with this one. I am against the civil unions bill," said Grantham, president of Java Beans Hawaii and general manager of Tropics Bar and Grill at the Hilton Hawaiian Village.

Nicolas, 57, senior pastor of Bible Baptist Church of Honolulu, said a priority is reducing speeding in Village Park.

Nicolas said he would ask the Police Department to periodically put up portable radar speed trailers that flash a motorist’s speed to remind them to slow down.

He also said education is a priority, and he wants to prevent a repeat of the furloughs that cut school days last year.

"Some other things (could be cut)," Nicolas said. "I’m not saying that they aren’t all important, but things that are not immediate needs."

The state administration would be one area to examine, he said. "A little bit downsizing, probably," Nicolas said.

On the Republican side, Wong said he knows he has an uphill battle in a blue-collar district that has long been a Democratic stronghold.

The self-proclaimed "30- to 40-year Democrat" switched to the Republican Party, and he said he is fed up with Democratic politics in Hawaii.

"I’m a retired guy that has a fixed income, and all I hear is tax and spend," said the 65-year-old former Honolulu police officer and insurance fraud investigator.

"The solution is cut spending," Wong said. "You’ve got to cut the size of government. You’ve got to stop funding political projects."

The Department of Education employs 1,036 people in central administration, including 112 secretaries and 46 clerk typists, Wong said.

"You can’t tell me they can’t cut costs and put some money in schools and schoolbooks," Wong said.

A candidate questionnaire was not received from Cordero, another Republican candidate, and multiple attempts to reach him were unsuccessful.