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Gov. Neil Abercrombie has tapped State Rep. Maile Shimabukuro and former state Sen. Malama Solomon as replacements for Sens. Colleen Hanabusa and Dwight Takamine.
“They are dedicated public servants who will help move the state forward in these difficult economic conditions,” Abercrombie said in a news release.
Hanabusa and Takamine are leaving their elected office with two years remaining on their respective terms.
Hanabusa was elected to the U.S. House of Representatives last month and will head to Washington, D.C., when the new Congress convenes next year.
Takamine has been appointed by Abercrombie to serve as director of the Department of Labor and Industrial Relations, subject to confirmation by the state Senate.
Shimabukuro has represented the 45th District (Waianae-Makua) since 2003. She is an attorney with the Legal Aid Society of Hawaii.
Solomon served in the state Senate from 1983 to 1998 and as a trustee for the Office of Hawaiian Affairs from 1980 to 1982. She is a former University of Hawaii-Hilo affiliate professor and a Hawaiian studies teacher. She was the lieutenant governor candidate on the 2006 Democratic ticket with Randy Iwase that lost to Linda Lingle.
