Six candidates for the Office of Hawaiian Affairs are running for three seats on the Nov. 5 ballot.
Voters across the state will be able to vote for either incumbent Keli‘i Akina or challenger Lei Ahu Isa for one at-large OHA Board of Trustees seat. In the Aug. 10 primary, Akina received 40,836 votes and Ahu Isa had 30,860 votes.
There are also two seats open for resident trustees on neighbor islands, but all voters statewide can vote on those OHA races no matter where they live.
For the OHA Kauai-Niihau trustee seat, incumbent Dan Ahuna, who has represented the islands since November 2012, will compete against Laura Lindsey. The seat was not on the primary election ballot.
Also up for grabs is the Molokai-Lanai resident trustee seat with incumbent Luana Alapa facing Kunani Nihipali. Alapa, elected as the OHA Molokai-Lanai trustee in 2020, received 55,971 votes in the primary election while Nihipali garnered 34,173 votes.
Hawaii County voters in the Aug. 10 primary already elected Kaiali‘i “Kai” Kahele to the OHA Board after Kahele won outright with 19,088 of the votes. His nearest competitor — Ka‘apana Aki — received only 5,457 votes.
Kahele represents the highest-profile OHA candidate this year.
In 2016, then-Gov. David Ige appointed Kahele to represent District 1 in the state Senate after his father, Gil Kahele, died unexpectedly. Throughout his time in the Senate, Kahele served as the majority whip, majority floor leader and chair of the committees on Higher Education and Water and Land.
Kahele successfully ran for Congress in 2020, becoming the second Native Hawaiian to represent Hawaii in Washington, D.C., following the late former Sen. Daniel Akaka.
Kahele replaced former U.S. Rep. Tulsi Gabbard, who chose not to seek reelection to focus on her unsuccessful bid for the Democratic presidential nomination.
After serving one term in Congress, Kahele ran for governor in 2022 but was defeated in the Democratic Party primary by then-Lt. Gov. Josh Green.
Kahele reemerged in Hawaii politics this year to successfully run for OHA.
Four seats on the OHA board are “at-large” trustees. The remaining five seats are resident trustees with one trustee representing Hawaii island, Maui, Molokai and Lanai, Oahu, and Kauai and Niihau.
Of the nine-member OHA Board, four seats are up for election this year. The remaining five seats, representing three at-large positions, Oahu and Maui, will be up for election in 2026.
Candidates for OHA Trustee must be residents of the respective islands for seats requiring residency and must also be registered voters in the state of Hawaii.
OHA, a semi-autonomous state agency, was established in 1978 to enhance the well-being of Native Hawaiians.
Each year, OHA provides $500,000 in scholarships for Native Hawaiian students to support their college education. Over the past decade, the agency has distributed over $34 million in loans to help Native Hawaiians start businesses, improve homes, consolidate debts and pursue further education, among other efforts to benefit Hawaii.
According to OHA, its grants program is “integral” to funding programs and services aligned with its strategic plan, awarding over $12 million annually to initiatives that promote the well-being of Native Hawaiians.
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