Both candidates for state House District 47, representing Oahu’s North Shore from Waialua to Kaaawa, are 36 years old, dropped out of college, are first-time fathers, were not born in Hawaii and lived overseas.
That’s where the similarities end.
One bought his first home with a $250,000 loan from his parents, owned a business and did some modeling.
The other describes himself as the son of a poor farmer and a teacher, is not a homeowner and deployed twice to the Middle East while in the military.
Some people may be surprised to learn which one is the Republican and which is the Democrat.
Sean Quinlan
Incumbent Democrat Sean Quinlan was born in Hong Kong where his father, a toy industry executive, was working at the time. He grew up in Long Island, N.Y., where he got his GED, then studied history and political science at George Mason University before dropping out in his senior year.
Quinlan moved to Beijing where he taught English, modeled and even appeared in some commercials on Chinese television.
He bought his first home in Mililani Mauka and sold it five years later for $120,000 to $130,000 more than what he paid and used the windfall to buy a home in Haleiwa to be close to his parents. Quinlan also owned Hawaii Chillers Inc., a wholesaler of frozen drinks and coffee, then sold the company four years later.
Quinlan said he took a one-year sabbatical after selling his company and doesn’t have any other employment, apart from his job as a state representative. He said he’s made some good real estate decisions in Hawaii and on the mainland. His wife is a photographer.
“I’m doing OK,” he said.
Quinlan said he got swept up into politics in 2016 by Democrat Bernie Sanders’ run for president. He said he favors campaign finance reform to combat a system of government that rewards only those at the top. He said his North Shore constituents’ contribution to state coffers is second only to the Waikiki area, and he wants to make sure they get their fair share of state attention.
Richard Lee Fale
Republican challenger Richard Lee Fale was born in Provo, Utah, where his mother was attending Brigham Young University. The family moved to Hawaii and Fale went to school in Kahuku. He graduated from high school in Tonga, where the family moved when his mother got a teaching job there.
Fale, of Hauula, went to BYU Hawaii for three years where he studied international business and information systems.
He signed up for the Army Reserve and was a member of the 100th Battalion, 442nd Infantry Regiment from 2006 to this past February. A training accident left him blind in his right eye and prevented him from re-enlisting, but so far has not qualified him for disability benefits.
Fale said he is a stay-at-home dad to his 2-year-old daughter, whom he takes along on the campaign trail. His wife is a recent law school graduate.
His first run for office ended in a loss in the 2008 general election for a state Senate seat. He won the North Shore’s state House seat in 2012, then lost in his second try for the Senate in 2014.
He said he entered politics because the state’s high cost of living was forcing its young people to leave. Of his parents’ eight children, Fale said he is the only one still living in Hawaii.
“The entire system needs to be overhauled,” he said.
Fale said his district has the highest percentage of multigenerational families living under one roof.
Correction: Sean Quinlan and Richard Lee Fale are competing to represent state House District 47. An earlier version of this story and in the Sunday print edition had an incorrect district number.
