The Hawaiʻi House Republican caucus entered the 2024 legislative session with a small minority, making conservative legislative priorities extremely difficult to pass.
With six elected Republican members out of the 51 seats in the Hawai’i House of Representatives, Democrats maintain another year of a supermajority in the chamber.
This situation for Minority Leader Rep. Lauren Matsumoto is especially problematic in an election year.
Regardless of the balance of power, House Republicans’ 2024 top priorities include HECO accountability, eliminating taxes on groceries and medications, the cost of living crisis, and election integrity.
“Hawaii has a big election issue. For one, the U.S. citizen verification process is so lax. There’s no efficiency in our elections, and that’s definitely troubling,” Matsumoto said, during a town hall meeting with local Republican voters.
But, with such a small minority, Matsumoto can’t pass any conservative legislation without overwhelming Democratic support. Therefore, she often acknowledges the need for bipartisanship and avoids partisan fights.
“We have to recognize that no one party is good or bad and that problems definitely exist in both,” Matsumoto said during the town hall.
Ginger Kubota, a Republican voter from Matsumoto’s Mililani district, said she supports the House Minority Leader’s efforts to push through conservative bills. Nonetheless, she can’t help but feel disappointed when it has no chance of passing.
“In many ways, I don’t blame the House Republicans because it’s not entirely their fault. But as a very long-time Republican voter who’s wanted to see hard conservative legislation, how can I not be frustrated and angry over the party’s capability, or lack thereof, to really get anything done,” Kubota said.
In an election year for some state legislators, political observers are looking at how disappointment and dissatisfaction among Hawai’i Republican voters could affect the electorate in November.
Grant Nakasone is a sophomore, second-year journalism major at UH Mānoa and is primarily interested in web and broadcast journalism with a focus in politics.
