Legalized gambling in Hawaii would only be a detriment to the community, say a majority of the candidates vying for the state Senate seat to represent Kauai and Niihau.

Six candidates – Alfred Darling, JoAnne Georgi, David Hamman, Ronald Kouchi, Herman Wilson and John Yamane – are running for the Senate 7th District seat vacated by former Sen. Gary Hooser, a Democrat who resigned in the middle of his four-year term to run for lieutenant governor.

The field is made up of two Democrats, two Republicans and two nonpartisan candidates. With the exception of Georgi, all are running for a seat in the state Legislature for the first time.

Nearly all said allowing gambling in the islands would detract from Hawaii’s natural beauty. "If you want to gamble, go to Las Vegas. If you want beauty, come to Kauai," said Georgi, who unsuccessfully ran for the Senate seat in 2008. Georgi, who formerly worked at Shell Vacations Club Hawaii Sales, serves as treasurer of the American Association of University Women-Pacific Division.

Kouchi, former chairman of the Kauai County Council, shared the same sentiment, saying legalizing gambling would cripple the state. "It would have a negative effect on our community," he said.

Kouchi, community relations director for Showe Land and Marine, served on the Kauai Council from 1982 to 2002, including 12 years as its leader.

Wilson said he does not want his three children to be exposed to the seedy lifestyles tied to gambling. "I wouldn’t want them to be corrupted in that way," said Wilson, a contractor who owns a custodial and floor maintenance business with his wife, Sandy. Wilson has served in the Government Affairs Committee of the Kauai Chamber of Commerce and has served as a volunteer for the Lions Club.

Yamane, owner of Hawaii Internet Providers Inc. and system administrator for Hawaii Link Internet, said gambling would only lead to more mischief. "It’s going to interfere with the moral fabric of our community. I think it’s wrong," he said.

Yamane, board president of the Kauai Food Bank, is a member of several organizations, among them the West Kauai Rotary and West Kauai Business and Professional Association.

Darling, the only supporter of gambling among the candidates, said it would help generate revenue for the state. "In reality, I think the state has a greater advantage for the beneficiaries because the money will more likely stay here than go someplace else," said Darling. "They will be reinvesting in their community."

Darling recently resigned as director of Kauai Economic Opportunity’s Homeless Barrier Removal Program to run for the Senate seat. From August 1999 to October 2008, he served as director of the American Red Cross-Kauai County.

On the subject of civil unions, most of the

candidates say they oppose them.

Georgi said allowing civil unions would lead to unintended consequences. "If you open up marriage between two men or two women, a man could ask to be married to two women," she said. "A woman can request to be married to two men. It’s just a slippery slope."

Hamman, owner of Integrity Key Lock & Safe and Integrity Alarm Surveillance & Access, is also opposed to civil unions between same-sex couples, saying it goes against "God’s design."

Wilson said he remains neutral on the issue, saying he would be open to discussion. "I wouldn’t say I’m for or against the bill, although I’m not against people’s rights and people’s belief of what’s right for them," he added.

Darling is the only supporter of civil unions among the candidates, saying same-sex couples should be offered the same benefits as opposite-sex couples. There is going to be more division among the community if they are not provided the same benefits as opposite-sex couples, he said.