Hanabusa, Djou to vie for votes in rerun for Congress

There will be new shows on TV this fall, but in politics, it is the season of reruns, starting with the 1st Congressional District race between Democratic U.S. Rep. Colleen Hanabusa and former Republican U.S. Rep. Charles Djou.

Wait, didn’t we just see this show?

Now they are back with new stories, new adventures and with Djou hoping for a new outcome.

In 2010, Djou beat a crowded field of Democrats, including Hanabusa, in a winner-take-all race to fill the unexpired term of Neil Abercrombie, who had resigned to run for governor. Then in the regular election for the following two-year term, Djou lost to Hana- busa by 11,417 votes.

Hanabusa, Hawaii’s first female state Senate president, went off to Congress and plunged into Capitol Hill politics.

"I quickly learned the significant role Hawaii plays in (the U.S.) pivot to Asia and Pacific and how it will define the 21st century," Hanabusa said.

Djou, one of the Hawaii GOP’s major players, announced that he would run again for the urban Hono- lulu CD1, but his plans were cut short when he was called up.

As a major in the Army Reserves, Djou was called up to serve in Afghanistan from last September to March. He served as a judge advocate general in Kandahar, Afghanistan. While in uniform, Djou was unable to campaign, so his campaign is a slow-starting rebuilding effort.

"I don’t think anyone would go into a combat zone as a political strategy, but it was service; there are things more important than politics," Djou said.

The latest Hawaii Poll, taken last month, shows that if the election were held now, Hanabusa would win, 50 to 41 percent.

Hanabusa, a strong labor Democrat in an area holding the major blue-collar labor areas of the state, shows strength in several areas. She captures 53 percent of the female voters, compared to Djou winning just 36 percent of the women voters.

Also, Hanabusa uniformly is strong in almost all demographic areas. The poll shows her with more than 50 percent support by voters of Japanese, Filipino and Hawaiian ancestry. Those making under $50,000 a year and those making more than $100,000 also support Hanabusa.

Djou’s strengths are with white voters: he gets 46 percent of the Caucasian voters, 55 percent of those making between $50,000 and $90,000, and also wins 67 percent support among those who describe themselves as independents.

Voters view Hanabusa favorably. When asked their opinion of the 61-year-old labor lawyer, who served 12 years in the state Senate, 57 percent of male voters and 62 percent of female voters viewed her favorably. Djou, a 41-year-old business attorney, was viewed favorably by 50 percent of the men and 47 percent of the women.

As the campaign continues, Hanabusa will find her congressional voting record examined and parsed by the GOP. She says that one change from her previous campaign against Djou is that she has "been in Congress and had to vote and take positions on issues."

For Djou, the challenge will simply be running as a Republican in a Democratic state that is going to go overwhelmingly for President Barack Obama.

To counteract that, Djou says that if voters take Obama out of the equation and look at other Democrats and Republicans running, he compares favorably to popular GOP candidates, such as former Gov. Linda Lingle, who is running for the U.S. Senate.

"There will be spillover from the Senate race. Lingle is a stronger candidate than Duke," Djou said, indicating that former GOP Lt. Gov. James "Duke" Aiona, who ran unsuccessfully for governor two years ago, was not a help to the overall GOP ticket.

Still for Djou to win in Democratic Hawaii, he will need to find a clear path as an independent and not just a Republican.

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Richard Borreca writes on politics on Sundays, Tuesdays and Fridays. Reach him at rborreca@staradvertiser.com.