Possible Nakasone successors ‘in a limbo’

WAILUKU - It appears Gov. Linda Lingle will name a successor to the late state Rep. Bob Nakasone before the legislative session begins Jan. 21, Maui's senior legislator said Saturday.

Time is running out for voters in the House 9th District if they are to have a qualified representative in place to serve their interests for the opening of the 2009 session.

Nakasone, a 16-year legislator and former Maui County Council chairman, died Dec. 7 - barely a month after winning re-election to the seat and after what had been considered a successful fight with lung cancer. He was 68.

On Saturday, Rep. Joe Souki, whose 8th District of Wailuku borders Nakasone's district, said he spoke with Lingle two days before and was told she intends to select a replacement in the next week or so. In accordance with state law, Lingle was presented a list of three candidates forwarded by the Hawaii Democratic Party.

The folks in the running are Wailuku attorney and former state land board chairman Gil Keith-Agaran, 46; Maui Police Department Central Dispatch Office supervisor Kehau Filimoe'atuu, 61; and Maui Democratic Party Chairman Lance Holter, 58.

The 9th district includes Kahului, portions of Wailuku and Lower Paia.

By law, Lingle has until Feb. 5 to make her selection. Late last week, her spokesman, Russell Pang, said that she had not set a timetable for her decision.

"We will review the public comments and do our due diligence in examining each of them," Pang said.

Keith-Agaran said he was contacted by Lingle's office Friday - the last day for the public to proffer input on the candidates - to set up an interview sometime this week.

Holter said he had not yet been contacted by the governor's staff, but Keith-Agaran said Lingle's office informed him they were having some difficulty finding contact information for the other two candidates.

"I'm in the phone book," said Holter, a Paia real estate broker. "Well, I guess it's Gil."

Keith-Agaran has been a director for the state Department of Labor and Industrial Relations, chairman of the state Department of Land and Natural Resources, and deputy director of Commerce and Consumer Affairs. In his state positions over the years, he often worked with Nakasone at the Legislature.

"I'm not going to be presumptuous," he said Saturday. "I'm not doing much more to prepare rather than keep abreast of what I see in the papers and contact some people in the community to see what their interests are."

If he gets the job, Keith-Agaran said he'll probably have to rely on the charity of friends in Honolulu until he can find an apartment. Keith-Agaran said he thought the governor should make the appointment sooner rather than later so Nakasone's replacement can be better prepared for what's certain to be a challenging session.

"If you start up too late, you won't have as much opportunities to introduce bills," he said. "And the briefings on the state budget already started this week, for instance, at the capitol. There's a pretty sharp learning curve there."

Hawaii Democratic Party Chairman Brian Schatz said they respect the governor's authority, but also want an appointment before the session begins. The Democrats have already been caucusing in Honolulu up to four days a week to set priorities and organize strategies to deal with the economic crisis and state budget cuts.

"We trust that she will make the best decision for Maui and the district," Schatz said of Lingle, who is also a former Maui County mayor.

Holter and Filimoe'atu both have previously run for public office without a win. Holter ran for the County Council's Makawao-Haiku-Paia residency seat in 2002 and 2004. Filimoe'atu ran for the Office of Hawaiian Affairs in 1994.

Souki said he thought the Maui delegation will be fine as long as Lingle makes up her mind in the next week and a half.

"I think that always was in her (Lingle's) mind, to get the ball rolling," Souki said.

Filimoe'atu could not be reached for comment Saturday by The Maui News. Holter said he was hoping to hear either way before the session starts.

"Right now, we can't make any plans," Holter said. "We can't shift our lives into getting prepared for what is going to be involved as far as winding up our business here or get our staff organized and bills introduced. We're stuck in a limbo here."

Maui Democratic Party members nominated nine candidates, which were whittled down to three by secret ballot after an interview process held in mid-December by the local party's district council, Holter said. They also submitted resumes and filled out a questionnaire.

State party officials oversaw the process, Holter said.

Lingle's choice will serve a full two-year term.

Chris Hamilton can be reached at chamilton@mauinews.com.