Campaigning for governor is whole new sport for Ige

On one level you can look at 57-year old David Ige’s political history and wonder why the Pearl City Democrat would ever even consider running for governor.

His 28-year political career has not been one of hard-fought, challenging elections or nail-biting contests.

Ige was first appointed to the state House by former Gov. George R. Ariyoshi and the young electrical engineer mostly ran unopposed.

Perhaps his biggest challenge was his first race, a Democratic primary between newly appointed Ige and Kevin Kuroda, the son of the popular Pearl City senator Joe Kuroda.

The primary was won by Ige, 2,720 to 1,726. Kuroda went on to become one of the Legislature’s most reliable budget analysts and is now House sergeant-at-arms.

So Ige‘s hard work has not been in electoral politics. His skills, according to friends and colleagues, come from appreciating the value of solving problems by consensus, not fiat.

The question now, however, is how will Ige fare in the second round of this campaign, when he has to face Gov. Neil Abercrombie in a series of forums, discussions and debates.

Obviously this is not a time for consensus; it is a time for measuring the candidates and picking not an agreeable solution, but a winner.

This is the part of the process that prompted the cliché: "Politics is a blood sport."

What does Ige know about framing an issue to define him or turning the issue against his opponent?

A former political ally of Ige, who asked to remain anonymous, notes campaigning is one sport, but governing is another, and being good in one does not guarantee success in the other.

"Campaigning is like football; governing is more like baseball — different skill sets," he said.

Abercrombie likes to make references to his own high school football days.

"I was a running guard, so I understand teamwork," he says.

Abercrombie is articulate and does well in debates, although his ability to ad-lib a speech really shines when he is alone on stage and not in comparison.

I suspect that even though after a debate everyone asks "Who won?" the lasting question to ask after a debate is, "Now who do you trust?"

The debate or forum offers up a chance for voters to see not only candidates thinking on their feet, but an opportunity to see how they interact, how they respond to challenges and at the most basic, how they make you feel.

Former Gov. Ben Cayetano, an early Ige supporter, said he was concerned about Ige’s lack of campaign experience, but now calls him "a fast learner."

""He is not given to engage in hyperbole or sound bites which under the circumstances of this election will be welcomed and seen by many as a strength," Cayetano said in an email.

Author Malcolm Gladwell wrote about former President Bill Clinton’s own ability to calm and reassure an audience was so appreciated that staffers felt that if Clinton could shake every voter’s hand, "he would be elected unanimously."

The point is that issues are always coming and going, being shoved to the forefront and then forgotten, but the nuances that a voter picks up from watching a candidate are what can move an election in ways that are difficult to measure.

This year, the campaign book that might explain the governor’s race is not one on state balance sheets or alternate energy, but Gladwell’s 2013 best-seller "David and Goliath: Underdogs, Misfits, and the Art of Battling Giants."

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