Former Judge, U.S. attorney and Deputy Prosecutor Steve Alm appears to have a solid lead in the race for Honolulu prosecuting attorney two weeks before the general election.

Alm is ahead by 8 percentage points over his rival, trial attorney and former deputy prosecutor Megan Kau, in the Hawaii Poll commissioned by the Honolulu Star-Advertiser.

Alm was favored by 41% of Honolulu voters, while Kau was preferred by 33%.

But there’s plenty of room for Kau to come from behind, according to the poll, as more than a quarter of all voters remained undecided — more than any other islandwide race.

The Hawaii Poll was conducted Oct. 12 to Wednesday by telephone by Mason- Dixon Polling & Strategy of Washington, D.C. It included 625 registered Oahu voters who said they are likely to vote in the general election. The margin of error is plus or minus 4 percentage points.

In August’s primary election, Alm captured 40% of the vote while Kau won nearly 25% from a field of seven.

The winner of the Nov. 3 general election will be the first elected prosecutor since Keith Kaneshiro.

Kaneshiro has been on paid leave since March 2019 after being named a target of federal corruption investigation that resulted in convictions for Deputy Prosecutor Katherine Kealoha and her estranged husband, former Honolulu Police Chief Louis Kealoha.

Both of the candidates have vowed to restore integrity to the office.

Alm, 67, said his experience of more than three decades in Hawaii’s criminal system will help him bring credibility to the office and create a culture of high ethical standards.

Kau, 42, said she assisted the federal government in investigating Kealoha and will terminate anyone in the office who helped the jailed deputy prosecutor carry out her misdeeds.

Fred Higa of Kahala said he’s already sent in his ballot with a check by Alm’s name.

“I like his experience as an attorney and judge. At this time we need someone in the prosecutor’s office who understands the law and has experience adjudicating the law,” he said.

Higa, 67, a retired banker, said Honolulu needs someone who can return integrity to the office.

“Keith Kaneshiro did a hell of a job messing it up,” he said.

Higa said he was also impressed with Megan Kau and might even vote for her down the road, “but for now I want someone with experience and who will stand up straight,” he said.

Maralie Cleaver of Ewa Beach said she voted for Kau because she is the younger of the two candidates.

“I’m trying to give the younger people a chance. We need fresh blood,” she said.

Cleaver, 65, said she recently retired after decades of teaching, the last 21 years in Hawaii, where she taught at Mililani High School. Her husband also recently retired after a career in the military.

“We need someone who is energetic, with new ideas. It’s time to pass the torch,” she said.

Breaking down the Hawaii Poll numbers, male voters were just about split between Alm and Kau, while women favored Alm substantially, 43% to 30%.

By race, Japanese and Hawaiian voters overwhelmingly favored Alm by 29 and 23 percentage points, respectively, while white voters preferred Kau by 4 percentage points.

By party, Republicans supported Kau 41% to 28%, while Democrats and independents favored Alm 49% to 31% and 40% to 29%.

Raenee Baily admitted she doesn’t know an awful lot about the prosecutor candidates, but she plans to vote for Kau on the recommendation of friends who said she will do a good job.

Baily, 53, said she was voting this year for the first time because Hawaii needs a change from what she called the corrupt politicians who are running the place.

“I’m fed up with it. I’m tired of it. And I can’t complain if I don’t vote,” she said.

After years of not complaining, she said, Baily finally registered to vote.

“We need new blood,” she said, “because who we have in office right now has been in too long already.”

Stewart Curry, 55, said there isn’t much difference between the ideology of the two candidates, but he is voting for Kau because he feels it is important to have female representation in that area of the government.

His vote, however, is being canceled out by his wife, who voted for Alm, he said. Her vote was essentially “a coin toss,” he said, but she is going with Alm because a lot of people in their neighborhood appear to be supporting the former judge.

Curry, a lifelong independent, said a big part of why he will be voting for the Democratic candidate for president this year is because Joe Biden chose a woman as his running mate — not to mention he doesn’t like the incumbent.

Andrew Ghali, 56, a retired engineer who lives on Wilhelmina Rise, said he remains undecided. He said he has his ballot and that he’s still investigating the candidates.

Ghali, who called himself a progressive, said he voted for Jacquie Esser, considered the most progressive candidate, in the primary. But Esser didn’t qualify for the general, coming in third right behind Kau.

As for his choices now, he’s torn. While Alm seems to favor some alternative forms of justice, he’s been in the system for years, he said, and it would be nice to elect someone new who can transform the prosecuting attorney’s office.

Kau, considered “the law and order candidate,” has vowed to prosecute all levels of crimes.

“That sounds crazy until you’re in a neighborhood community watch and you see thieves arrested and released. They were arrested for attempted theft of a moped inside a garage.”

Ghali looked up their criminal records and they were rather lengthy. “But they don’t seem to be suffering any consequences for their behavior,” Ghali said.

“But the question is, Where do you put them?” he said. “Nobody wants to build another prison, and shipping them to the mainland is a terrible idea. It guarantees recidivism because they have no contact with their family, which is the support structure to allow them to be less criminal.”

HI1020Poll Monday Prosecutor by Honolulu Star-Advertiser on Scribd