A member of the state House of Representatives since 1978, Rep. Barbara Marumoto has been through reapportionment and redistricting three times before.

People come and go. The population changes. Boundaries shift, she says.

Ten years ago, in the last redrawing of political lines, seven pairs of incumbents wound up being placed in the same districts, forcing them to run against each other.

Marumoto, a Republican, is among three pairs of House lawmakers in that situation this time around, having to run against Rep. Mark Hashem, a Democrat who is just completing his first term.

"I more or less feel: Let the chips fall where they may," said Marumoto (R, Kalani Valley-Diamond Head). "I’m not overly concerned or overly worried about a whole new territory.

"I’m comfortable with East Honolulu."

Hashem says he hasn’t really thought about the race yet — it’s still more than a year away — but he understands the challenge.

"I’m the underdog," said Hashem (D, Hahaione Valley-Aina Haina).

Despite their opposing party affiliations, Hashem says he has gotten to know Marumoto and has worked with her on issues relevant to the broader community.

"It’s just unfortunate that our districts got combined," he said.

Such is life after reapportionment, the process of distributing legislative seats among the islands; and redistricting, the actual drawing of the boundaries to reflect the population shifts over the past 10 years.

Other incumbents in the same district after redistricting are Rep. Rida Cabanilla (D, Waipahu-Ewa) and Rep. Kymberly Pine (R, Ewa Beach-Iroquois Point) on Oahu; and Rep. Mark Nakashima (D, Hawi-Hilo) and Rep. Jerry Chang (D, Piihonua-Kaumana) on Hawaii island.

The Hawaii island redistricting is the only one placing incumbents from the same party in the same district.

Nakashima, who is finishing his second term, said he already has discussed the issue with Chang, who began serving in 1989.

"Rep. Chang and I had a discussion early on, kind of in passing, in regard to our feeling that we didn’t want to run against each other," Nakashima said, "For myself, I still want to continue serving in the Legislature, so we’ll be looking at what options I have to continue doing that."

That option could come in the form of a Senate seat, if a pending legal challenge is successful.

New political maps were approved last week by the state Reapportionment Commission, but Hawaii County Democrats plan to sue, alleging the commission erred by including too many "nonresident" military members, their dependents and students. The so-called nonresidents are not permanent Hawaii residents and are not eligible to vote here.

The commission voted to subtract only a small portion of those residents, based on their known residency status and the ability to locate their addresses and determine from which areas they should be removed.

Including more of the nonresidents maintains a greater population base on Oahu and negates growth in Hawaii County that normally would result in the island gaining a fourth seat in the state Senate, and Oahu losing a seat.

Stanley Roehrig, a Hilo attorney and former state lawmaker who is preparing the lawsuit, said the filing is expected in the next few weeks.

If successful, removing more of the nonresidents would alter Senate districts on Oahu and in Hawaii County along with House districts on Oahu.

Potential candidates are left to wait out the process.

Now is the time when candidates normally would begin getting the campaigns in order to begin fundraising. A lawsuit delaying the finalization of the political districts means that some prospective candidates will have to wait to see what the districts ultimately will look like and where they need to focus their campaigns.

That the delay might prevent some people from running altogether is a possibility, said Dante Carpenter, state Democratic Party chairman.

"Whether or not it will make the difference, I honestly don’t know," he said. "I think it could, and hopefully that would be at a minimum."

Nakashima is among those carefully watching the process and remaining hopeful for a way to remain in the Legislature without having to take on a friend and ally in the primary.

"Once the final maps are out, then we’ll kind of sit down and talk a little bit about what our plans are," Nakashima said. "I am hopeful that there is the possibility out there that might provide some other options for myself."