LIHU‘E — The State of Hawai‘i Organization of Police Officers on Monday endorsed former Gov. Linda Lingle on her bid for Hawai‘i’s Senate seat in November. On Friday, Lingle came to Kaua‘i to personally thank SHOPO Kaua‘i Chapter, which confirmed
LIHU‘E — The State of Hawai‘i Organization of Police Officers on Monday endorsed former Gov. Linda Lingle on her bid for Hawai‘i’s Senate seat in November. On Friday, Lingle came to Kaua‘i to personally thank SHOPO Kaua‘i Chapter, which confirmed its support for the Republican candidate.
“We back her 100 percent,” said SHOPO Board of Directors secretary Bryson Ponce, a detective at Kaua‘i Police Department and a 14-year veteran of the force.
“When I received the endorsement at the beginning of this week in Honolulu, we had planned that I could go out and thank the officers across the state,” said Lingle at the Lihu‘e SHOPO headquarters.
Calling herself a “neighbor-island person” for having lived 10 years on Molokai and 13 years on Maui, she said she always felt that neighbor islands are “somehow an after-thought.”
“She let us know she was going to run for (U.S.) Senator and we were ecstatic,” Ponce said. “It was a no-brainer for us that we were going to support her, we were going to endorse her and do everything we can to make sure she is representing us in Washington.”
Lingle served two terms as Maui County mayor before serving as governor from 2002 to 2010.
When SHOPO first endorsed Lingle in her 2002 bid for governor, it was the first time in history that the police officers’ union endorsed a Republican candidate, according to Ponce. SHOPO again endorsed Lingle in her 2006 bid for governor.
“We are so thankful for how instrumental she has been in supporting our police officers through all of her years, not only during her term on Maui but in the state level as well,” said Ponce.
Lingle said SHOPO’s endorsement, from a campaign point of view, is going to be really important because the race for U.S. Senate is going to be tough.
“All my races have been tough races and you’ve helped me in the past and this one will be extremely challenging,” she told SHOPO members.
In 2002 Mazie Hirono won the Democratic primaries for governor against Ed Case, but lost her bid for office when she faced Lingle in the general elections. This year, the race is for the Senate, but the candidates are the same — Case and Hirono are seeking Democratic nomination, and the winner will face off with Lingle.
“If I’m able to win this election, I can be a very clear voice for law enforcement at the federal level,” Lingle said at the Lihu‘e SHOPO headquarters.
Good law enforcement, she said, is an integrated law enforcement involving local police officers and federal officers. Local officers have a better understanding of the “comings and goings” of each community.
Lingle said that from the very first time she was in a leadership position, as Maui mayor, law enforcement was her number one priority. She said SHOPO’s endorsement meant a lot to her personally and gave a boost to her entire campaign.
“We are so excite to work with you in these coming months,” she told SHOPO members. “We’ll just work hard and I know with your support we can win this race, and I look forward to represent you in Washington D.C.”
SHOPO was founded in 1971, according to Ponce. Unions in Hawai‘i have a history of endorsing Democrats, but Ponce said SHOPO feels the endorsement is about the person and what he or she can bring to the table. In Lingle’s case, she brings integrity and efficiency, he said.
Local issues
Lingle said one of the issues on Kaua‘i she is aware of is the struggle between protecting Newell’s shearwaters and allowing Friday night high-school football games at county parks. Stadium lights attract juvenile birds on their maiden flight, disorienting them.
The county has retrofitted some of the stadium lights to minimize harm to the native birds which circle the lights and fall to the ground exhausted.
Football season goes from August through October. Games were traditionally played Friday nights.
Shearwater fledging season is from Sept. 15 through Dec. 15.
Since 2010, stadium lights cannot be turned on during the shearwater season, which has pushed the Friday night games to Saturday mornings, angering many in the community.
Another issue on Kaua‘i mentioned by Lingle is beach access restrictions imposed at the Pacific Missile Range Facility after 9/11 (See story at left). She said it has been more than 10 years since the terrorist attacks in New York, and the public must be able to enjoy the Westside beaches.
See “PMRF beach access since 9/11” on the side for PMRF’s response.
• Léo Azambuja, staff writer, can be reached at 245-3681 (ext. 252) or lazambuja@ thegardenisland.com.
