Swayed by the prospect of being a partner with Gov. Neil Abercrombie and the governor’s professed commitment to creating an administration that is not "Oahu-centric," veteran state lawmaker Shan Tsutsui abdicated his post as Senate president Thursday and accepted the job of lieutenant governor.
Tsutsui succeeds U.S. Sen. Brian Schatz, who on Wednesday was appointed by Abercrombie to fill the vacancy left by the death Dec. 17 of U.S. Sen. Daniel Inouye.
Schatz flew to Washington, D.C., Wednesday night aboard Air Force One with President Barack Obama, who was returning from vacation, and was sworn in earlier Thursday by Vice President Joe Biden.
Under the state Constitution, the Senate president is next in line to the lieutenant governor’s office, followed by the speaker of the House.
"I just look at this as a tremendous opportunity," Tsutsui said Thursday at a news conference with the governor. "We’re going to get moving right away.
"The … neighbor islands is one of the things I’d like to focus on, too. I’d like to serve as a liaison to all of the neighbor islands."
Tsutsui’s ascension to the state’s No. 2 executive post creates a vacancy in state Senate leadership and for his district of Waihee-Wailuku-Kahului. Abercrombie, by law, must appoint a replacement from a list of three names provided by a committee of Maui Democrats representing the vacant district.
"I’m looking forward, too, to the scramble in the Senate," Abercrombie said to about a dozen of Tsutsui’s Senate colleagues who attended his introductory news conference. "It’ll be a lot of fun to see what’s going on there."
Senate Vice President Donna Mercado Kim (D, Kalihi Valley-Moanalua-Halawa) will serve as the Senate’s presiding officer until the various factions can organize behind a new president.
"While we are sad to see President Shan Tsutsui leave the Senate, we are happy that he has agreed to accept the position of lieutenant governor and we look forward to working with him," Kim said in a statement. "The members of the Senate will meet in the next few days to discuss who will fill the Senate president’s position."
The chamber had organized within a week of the November elections and already had divvied up the various committee assignments and chairmanships.
State Sen. Brickwood Galuteria, the majority leader, said Tsutsui saw to it that the Senate was organized quickly, and he does not expect much change in the status quo.
"I think the least amount of movement, the better," said Galuteria (D, Kakaako-McCully-Waikiki). "I think we have everyone in place. … The committee assignments are already (set). I don’t see that changing."
Tsutsui, 41, was first elected to the Senate in 2002, and in 2010 became the youngest Senate president and the first from Maui. He leaves a comfortable Senate seat to become part of the Abercrombie administration, but said he has not thought about his political future beyond getting started as lieutenant governor.
If opposition surfaced, both would have to win their respective primaries to run as the governor-lieutenant governor ticket in 2014.
"I just really want to focus on working with the governor right now, trying to address some of the issues that are before us today, and in time I’ll make that decision," Tsutsui said.
Tsutsui said he originally thought of declining the promotion, but was swayed through intense discussions with Abercrombie since Wednesday over his role in the administration and how it would affect his family. Tsutsui lives on Maui with his wife, Lyndelle Lee, and their three young daughters.
"We made this decision together as a family," he said. "It is a challenge. We do live on Maui. The goal is to not relocate my family, and so there will be some challenges with that, but I’m sure we’ll be able to overcome those."
Abercrombie said he expects a true division of labor between himself and Tsutsui in carrying out the administration’s "New Day" proposals in areas of renewable energy, food production, education, information technology and other issues.
"It is not symbolic," Abercrombie said. "It is not pro forma. It is dynamic and it’s every day."
Abercrombie said the addition of Tsutsui also helps him achieve the goal of having an administration that is not "Oahu-centric," adding that he plans to assist him by establishing an official state office on his home island.
"There is nothing in the law to prevent, and in fact everything to encourage, the idea that we have an additional office — official offices — wherever we can," Abercrombie said.
He said Tsutsui will be working out of Maui and Oahu, officially.
"There’s no reason, constitutionally or otherwise, to expect neighbor island folks to have to give up their lives on neighbor islands in order to accept statewide office," Abercrombie said.
Tsutsui gave no specific policy proposal he was interested in working on, other than neighbor island causes, saying such discussions would come in due time. He added that he would like to put his legislative skills to use and potentially serve as a bridge between the administration and the Legislature.
"The governor has done a great job over the last several years communicating with the Legislature," Tsutsui said. "I’m hoping to just add some value to that."
