Name on ballot:

Kimberly Kopetseg

Running for:

State House – District 44

Political party:

Republican

Campaign website:

No answer submitted

Current occupation:

Family Nurse Practitioner

Age:

49

Previous job history:

On Oahu:
-I worked as a registered nurse (RN) in the ER night shift at Straub, Kaiser, and St. Francis West.
-Family Nurse Practitioner (FNP) at WorkStar.
-FNP at Waianae Coast Comprehensive Health Center (WCCHC) and their Kapolei Walk In Clinic (KWIK).
-FNP for neurosurgeon Dr. Jon Graham and his First Assistant at Queens Medical Center.
– FNP at Schofield Acute Care Clinic as a civilian for the military.

Previous elected office, if any:

N/A

Please describe your qualifications to represent the people of Hawaii.

I have been a RN and FNP protecting, serving, and saving lives on Oahu for the past 22 years of my life. I will continue to protect, serve, and look out for my community members health, safety, well-being, and best interest to the best of my ability.

What is the most pressing issue facing residents in your district and how would you address the problem?

The west side is disadvantaged from a lower socioeconomic standpoint and my community members are suffering and need assistance for mental health issues, and substance and/or alcohol use that leads to crimes which have become worse not better over the years.

I want to review where the Hawaii Federal funding has been utilized by each state department then allocate funds to support our local police department; implement better facilities to address causes of mental health issues, substance and/or alcohol use; improve homelessness; address traffic issues; provide more land for agriculture; and improve financial economy for local businesses to flourish.

Rising inflation has significantly worsened Hawaii’s already high cost of living. What can be done at the state level to help Hawaii residents cope with high consumer prices?

-Expand the current work force.

– Utilize the $8,906,600 Covid-19 awards received by the Department of Transportation (DOT) to address traffic issues especially in Waianae.

-Support our local and small businesses utilizing the $1, 280, 000 funding received for the Small Business Development Centers Cares Act received by the University of Hawaii Systems instead of larger franchise.

– Utilize the $1,190, 942 and $387,849 for low income housing, $560,130 for housing vouchers and energy assistance, Section 8 Housing $1,738,577, and $11, 990,147 for childcare received by the Department of Human Services.

Hawaii’s rising gasoline prices are among the highest in the nation. Should Hawaii lower or temporarily suspend state taxes on gasoline to help ease the pain at the pump?

Lowering or temporarily suspending state taxes would make inflation worse by boosting demand on an already short supply. Increasing goods of gasoline would drive prices down and slow inflation.

The free money received during the Covid-19 lockdowns were not free as American tax payers are paying it back by inflation which will lead to an economic collapse.

The Federal Reserve should lower its interest rates and/or we should buy oil, food, and other products from the United States (U.S.) instead of foreign countries to improve overall inflation rates for gas, food, products, and electricity.

Do you support or oppose efforts to slow or limit the number of tourists to Hawaii? Please explain.

I oppose limiting the number of tourists that come to Hawaii because tourism is the single source of private capital for Hawai’i’s economy and it also increases the number of job opportunities for our community, however; we need to make it a priority to support local farmers and small businesses instead of relying on larger franchise out of convenience to prevent the economic collapse of the middle class.

Can Hawaii’s tourism-dependent economy be diversified, and, if so, what can state government do to support the effort?


It is important for us to be self-sustainable as much as possible so a priority is to support local farmers and small businesses instead of larger franchises.

We should utilize the green energy resources that comes from nature (sunlight, wind, rain, tides, plants, algae, microbes, and geothermal heat) instead of oil, natural gas, and coal that produce batteries, concrete, steel, plastics, and purified minerals that are utilized to build “green” machines which are not cost affective and leads to inflation and overall economic collapse.

What is your plan to increase affordable housing in Hawaii, and to help the counties deal with homelessness?

Land and housing in Hawaii are bought by wealthy people and/or people from foreign countries. We need to make affordable housing for the middle class (essential workers) as they support our community the most and when they no longer can afford to live in Hawaii, they relocate to places like Vegas.

People can barely afford to pay rent in Hawaii, let alone save up to purchase a home. Government gets involved and makes the process harder, takes longer, and taxes things they do not want so it is time for new people with fresh ideas to fill seats in those political positions.

Builders do not want to build if it is a loss for them so smaller builders cannot compete and go through the regulatory process. Water to homes is also an issue which affects the overall cost of housing so we should consider focusing on desalinization as we are surrounded by ocean water.

Affordable housing loan criteria that must be met needs to be addressed as it states people can only spend 30% of their income on the mortgage. The mortgage should be capped off so it does not go above a set market price. We are seeing an increase in homelessness because of inflation and the higher cost of living in Hawaii.

We need to improve both inpatient and outpatient facilities to better support our community members who have mental health issues and substance and/or alcohol use to decrease the amount of homelessness.

The public deserves transparency regarding where the Hawaii Federal funding of $1,190,942 and $387,849 is being utilized for low income housing, $560,130 for housing vouchers and energy assistance, and $1,738,577 for Section 8 Housing by the Department of Human Services.

What would you propose to help protect Hawaii residents’ health during the continuing COVID-19 pandemic?

As a healthcare provider on Oahu, we should have had all of us specialists (healthcare providers, virologists, immunologists, DOH, the medical examiner, etc.) having meetings over the past 2+ years to discuss the SARS-CoV-2 virus that was diagnosed as Covid-19 to form and implement the best plan of care for our community yet to this date, that still has not taken place. Putting face masks on people who are healthy with no symptoms can cause more harm than good to our health. We should all have the freedom of choice to wear a mask or not.

The public deserves transparency regarding specific information and statistical data that has been collected over the past 2+ years instead of the DOH, politicians, healthcare providers/healthcare facilities, and DOH staff continuing to not disclose to the public necessary pertinent information to determine the risk vs benefit of wearing masks and receiving experimental injections and to develop the best plan of action and treatment to implement especially during a pandemic.

Hawaii isn’t likely to see a repeat of this year’s $2 billion revenue surplus which allowed higher-than-normal spending on state programs and projects. If elected, what will your top spending priorities be?

I will first review the Hawaii Federal funding Covid-19 awards and where each Hawaii State Department utilized the significant amount of funds they each received, along with the Federal and State funding that Hawaii receives while I am in office.

I will gather a team that involves specialists from different state departments to utilize the funds properly to improve our current healthcare, political, traffic, housing, workforce, and educational issues that must be addressed appropriately.

What, if anything, should state government do in response to the decision by the U.S. Supreme Court to overturn Roe vs Wade?

The U.S. Supreme Court overturned Roe vs Wade and now each state will have the opportunity to determine how they plan to address the concern regarding abortion. There are several different forms of birth control that can be utilized (pills, injections, implantable devices, condoms, sterilization, etc.).

There were significantly less illegitimate abortions compared to abortions once they became legalized. I highly encourage everyone to watch the Silent Scream on YouTube of a fetus being aborted as the fetus feels physical pain, moves its body away from a threat to its life, sucks its thumb, recognize its mother’s voice, etc. Are you aware that aborted fetal cells are used in the manufacturing process of vaccinations?

Women state “My Body My Choice” but what about the fetuses body and its choice to life? What about “My Body My Choice” when it comes to receive an experimental injection or not?

What should state government do to support and improve public education in Hawaii?

-The CDC and WHO have started sex education at birth-4 years old which is not necessary nor age appropriate.

-The superintendent of the DOE in Hawaii is elected by the governor so parents and guardians do not have a choice regarding who looks out for the safety, health, well-being, or best interest of their keiki.

-Teachers in public schools in Hawaii are teaching other teachers not to call a boy he or a girl she. The schools have graphic pornography books which are inappropriate to provide to children who are not of legal age to consent so there needs to be a change in the superintendent of the DOE and the educational material currently being taught in school.

-Healthcare professionals, staff at healthcare facilities, staff at the DOH, staff at the DOE, and politicians should be transparent, honest, trustworthy, respectful, and have integrity by providing factual information and statistical data for the public to review; offer town halls and allow meetings to take place with concerned healthcare providers, parents, and citizens in our community as our voices should not be censored, blocked, or silenced as that breaks our First Amendment Right to Freedom of Speech.

What reforms, if any, would you propose to make local government more transparent to the public?

Our government needs to return to being a republic serving the people instead of a democracy where governmental officials focus on themselves in the branches of government (legislative, executive, judicial) instead of the people they represent.

To rebuild the people’s trust in governmental officials, there needs to be a reform in government beyond transparency that provides the public the necessary tools to hold governmental officials accountable for their actions. We need to pay attention to their actions as actions speak louder than words.

Instead of fighting, there needs to be appropriate plans of action with realistic goals, expectations, and solutions to serious issues we are facing on a state, federal, and global scale regarding political, healthcare, and educational issues.

Do you support or oppose the construction of the Thirty Meter Telescope on the Big Island and why?

Different perspectives need to be respected, heard, and addressed to formulate the best plan of action. I understand why the Kupuna native Hawaiians elders and others oppose the construction of the Thirty Meter Telescope because of historical and cultural (ceremony, ritual, tradition, and ancestral passing down knowledge and protocol), and environmental reasons.

To provide my answer to this question, I need to personally speak to those who oppose it and the astronomers who support it that state they are focusing on earlier days of the universe, black holes, and alien worlds to see if the information I am provided justifies the use of the Thirty Meter Telescope or not.

Is there anything more that you would like voters to know about you?

I look forward to meeting more of my community members that I represent in district 44 (Maili, Nanakuli, Ko Olina, and Honokai Hale) to hear your concerns, wants, and needs as I represent your voices that deserve to be heard and I am here to serve and meet your needs.