Gov. David Ige appointed Kaialii Kahele — more often known as Kai — on Tuesday to his late father’s state Senate seat representing Hilo.

Kai Kahele is the son of former Sen. Gil Kahele, a Democrat who represented District 1 in the Senate until he died Jan. 26 after suffering a heart attack.

Kai Kahele, 41, is a major in the Hawaii Air National Guard and a combat veteran C-17 instructor pilot. In 2005 he was awarded a National Defense Service Medal and a U.S. Air Force Air Medal for combat missions flown in Afghanistan. He is also a pilot with Hawaiian Airlines.

Kahele, who served as treasurer in his father’s 2012 campaign, said he plans to run for election this year to seek a full term in the Hilo senate seat. The Ige appointment is effective until the Nov. 8 election, when the voters will choose Gil Kahele’s permanent replacement.

“I am humbled that Gov. Ige had the faith and confidence and trust in me to appoint me to the seat, but the appointment is political, and Aug. 13 is when the people of Hilo get to speak, and I hope that I can earn their vote, earn their trust, earn their confidence” during the legislative session now underway at the state Capitol, Kai Kahele said. Aug. 13 is the date of the primary election.

Kahele said he will be focused on bills that his father introduced this year and other initiatives the elder Kahele had been pushing during his time in the Senate.

Gil Kahele signed several bills the night before he died so they would be introduced over his name this session, including one that would create a future college of aviation in East Hawaii.

Another bill Kahale signed would advance plans to have the state purchase a small beach area at Kapua Bay south of Milolii that is rich in petroglyphs and other archaeological features. Kahele’s family comes from the area, and his plan was to incorporate the beach property into the South Kona wilderness area he helped create in his first year in office.

Kai Kahele said he will also be pursuing plans to complete the long-stalled rebuilding of a portion of the Lanakila Homes public housing complex, where his father lived for a time when he was growing up. A large portion of the complex closed years ago and was torn down, and rebuilding those units will provide low-cost housing for about 85 families when it is finally finished, Kai Kahele said.

Obtaining funding for covered playgrounds for Waiakea and Haaheo elementary schools also is a priority, he said.

A graduate of Hilo High School and the University of Hawaii at Manoa, Kahele worked as a substitute teacher in the public school system in Hilo for two years before becoming a pilot. In 2015 he was also a crew member on the Polynesian Voyaging Society’s canoe Hikianalia. He lives in the Waiakea Uka neighborhood of Hilo.

Ige said in a written statement that Kahele has “extensive community support and is committed to completing the work of his father. He has a broad vision for the future of this district and for all of Hawaii Island that will serve his constituents well.”

Kahele said he expects to take the oath of office before the regular session of the Senate today.