Former state Sen. Jill Tokuda today plans to officially launch her candidacy for the congressional seat held by Rep. Kai Kahele after returning from Washington, D.C., where she protested in front of the U.S. Supreme Court building along with hundreds of other abortion rights supporters.

Tokuda was the first well-known isle politician to pursue Kahele’s seat in the Aug. 13 Democratic primary, just 16 months into his first term representing the neighbor islands and rural Oahu. As expected, Kahele announced Saturday that he would be leaving Congress to run for governor.

Her candidacy now has particular urgency after a draft ruling leaked to the news media revealed that the Supreme Court’s conservative justices were preparing to overturn the land- mark 1973 Roe v. Wade decision that ensures a woman’s right to choose an abortion. Tokuda, who happened to be in the nation’s capital last week fundraising for her campaign, did not carry a sign but scribbled “My Body My Choice” on her yellow mask and walked out of her hotel room at midnight, joining up with others on their way to protest in front of the Supreme Court.

“It was so inspiring to see how quickly everyone got up and said, ‘This is a fight worth fighting,’” Tokuda said. “There were college kids, clearly working people and professionals — hundreds of them. I needed that. You can’t just sit and be mad. Now the work begins.”

Tokuda spoke to the Honolulu Star- Advertiser Friday during a break chaperoning her son’s sixth grade class to Challenger Center in Kapolei, a project she supported after the Space Shuttle Challenger exploded soon after takeoff in 1986, killing everyone aboard including Hawaii mission specialist Ellison Onizuka.

The trip to Washington — followed by the field trip with her youngest son — represents the balance between work and family that Tokuda, if elected, hopes to take to Washington on behalf of Hawaii’s working families.

She said she had considered running for Congress before but convinced herself in April to go for it while reading a book on trailblazing U.S. Rep. Patsy T. Mink to her son’s class at Kaneohe Elementary School — an appearance that was videotaped for the entire school.

One of the biggest lessons for Tokuda about Mink was the message, “Fall down seven times, get up eight,” she said.

If she serves in Congress, Tokuda’s family will stay behind in Kaneohe where she grew up. Tokuda and her husband, Kyle Michibata, have two sons, Matt, 13, an eighth grader at King Intermediate School, and Aden, 12, a sixth grader at Kaneohe Elementary. Both boys attend the same schools as their parents did as youngsters.

Asked about the sacrifice of being four time zones and nearly 5,000 miles from her family, Tokuda said she wants to help struggling and worried families find support and balance in their own lives.

She finds inspiration from Mink, whose daughter, Wendy, was in a car accident just before the congresswoman’s landmark Title IX legislation, ensuring financial equality for female athletes, was initially defeated by just one vote in Congress.

“Patsy was the first one to really show us in Hawaii that you don’t have to choose,” Tokuda said. “As mothers, as caregivers, it’s about us making those choices. It may be difficult, but we balance.”

Tokuda had been campaigning across the state in the lieutenant governor’s race. When she switched to run in Hawaii’s 2nd Congressional District, she said the initial reaction was nearly universal and only reinforced her decision.

“What touched me was the first question out of 99% of mouths was, ‘Are your kids OK? Is your husband OK?’” Tokuda said. “The reality is we care about all of our families. That’s how we are in Hawaii. That means a lot.”

Tokuda’s household includes her 40-year-old brother, who lost his hotel job during the COVID-19 pandemic and has since gone back to school for retraining; and her niece, a sophomore in high school.

Tokuda’s father and stepmother also have lived with her family.

“People just want the hope that it’s going to be OK and they’ll have a shot at making it and their kids can stay here,” Tokuda said. “When they look at leaders, they’re looking for help and understanding. They hope that you’re going to fight like hell for them. When I say I fight for families it’s because I am one.”

Tokuda promises she will not accept donations from corporate political action committees.

Like other state politicians, Tokuda faces the challenge of converting donations for her lieutenant governor’s campaign to a federal race, likely by returning donations and requesting contributions into her federal campaign.

If she gets elected in the August primary ahead of the Nov. 8 general election, Tokuda would find familiar allies in Hawaii’s congressional delegation, especially U.S. Sens. Mazie Hirono and Brian Schatz.

While Hirono served as lieutenant governor during former Gov. Ben Cayetano’s second term, Tokuda was Hirono’s executive aide, which she said had a simple job description: “I was her ‘Do Everything.’”

“And Sen. Schatz and I were (members of) Young Democrats at the time, but I think we’ve aged out,” Tokuda said with a laugh.

If House Democrats should lose their majority in this year’s midterm elections, Tokuda believes she can still help Hawaii constituents by finding like-minded Republicans who want to help the families they represent.

“No matter what the composition is of the Congress, it is about finding alliances, it’s about finding people who want to fight for the same things you do,” Tokuda said. “At the end of the day what people want is to get things done.”