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Hawaii News

Lopresti removes rival’s flyer, then apologizes

Gordon Y.K. Pang
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CRAIG T. KOJIMA / 2016

State Rep. Matt Lopresti was caught on camera removing an opponent’s campaign flyer from a constituent’s door in Ewa Beach recently. The video went viral and he has since issued an apology.

State Rep. Matt Lopresti issued an apology to constituents for removing an opponent’s campaign flyer from a constituent’s door in Ewa Beach recently.

Lopresti made the apology on his Facebook page Friday afternoon after Alicia Maluafiti, his Democratic primary opponent for the state Senate 19th District (Ewa, Ewa Beach) seat, and others posted a video, taken from the property’s security camera, showing him pulling a brochure from the door crack and tucking it under his own materials just before the resident opens the door.

The video went viral Friday, and someone even re-posted it on the popular Stolen Stuff Hawaii Facebook page before it was taken down by the page’s administrator.

Maluafiti said on her page under a copy of the video. “My opponent, Matt Lopresti, stealing my walking piece which I use when I go door to door: walking, knocking, and talking. Who knows how many more went missing?”

Lopresti said on his page that he returned the flyers the same day and included a video of him apologizing to a couple for taking their flyer. The couple, he said, appreciated his honesty and told him they would vote for him. “Political campaigns can be intense and emotions can cloud otherwise good judgement (sic) of even the best people. I sincerely apologize and have deep regret over my having taken some of those (flyers).”

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