A reason for hope

The record turnout for the Democratic Party’s caucuses in Hawaii on Tuesday is cause to cheer. Statewide, 37,182 voters were drawn to caucus sites. Only about 4,000 showed up in 2004.

Tuesday, Maui County caucuses alone saw 5,513 votes cast — 73 percent for Barack Obama and 26 percent for Hillary Clinton with 1 percent split between Dennis Kucinich and John Edwards.

For years, editorials in The Maui News have bemoaned the apparent apathy of the electorate as low turnout followed low turnout in election after election. Apparently what was really needed was enthusiasm for a candidate to leave that apathy behind.

Sen. Obama’s stunningly large victory over Sen. Clinton signals an end to disinterest in politics in Hawaii. Democratic Party members here rewarded their native son with over three-quarters of the record number of votes cast.

Incredible.

Obama’s emergence as the party’s front-runner should be a message to all candidates. As was written in this space last month, his success has been based mainly on emphasizing the positive — “Yes, we can.”

Indeed, if he achieves the nomination, it could set up an election where the candidates actually engage in a debate over ideas, philosophies and visions. Certainly the Republican candidate apparent, John McCain, has generally taken the high road in his campaigns and was, in fact, the victim of dirty tactics in 2000. And the two candidates have vastly different views of what role government should play in our society. Those different views should be the subject of the campaign.

So, there is reason to hope. An election season punctuated by reasoned debates like those between John F. Kennedy and Richard M. Nixon — and free of rancorous slash-and-burn trash ads — could reawaken the electorate.

In the meantime, politicians should try the high road for the rest of the primary season. Obama’s success shows the electorate wants hope and vision, not an endless trashing of opponents.