Sen. Ige Announces 2014 Challenge to Abercrombie

Oahu Sen. David Ige this morning announced that he will be a candidate for governor in next year’s election.

Ige, a Democrat, has represented the Pearl City-Aiea area in the state Legislature for the past 28 years, including 19 years in the Senate.

This past session he served as chair of the powerful Ways and Means Committee and will also be a member of the newly formed Senate committees on Tourism and Higher Education.

Ige, 56, said his decision to challenge incumbent Gov. Neil Abercrombie in the Democratic primary came following discussions with many friends and neighbors.

“Through those conversations, I realized that people here in Hawaii are hungry for a governor they can believe in and trust.”

“The citizens of Hawaii continue to face serious issues,” Ige said. “We need to strengthen and diversify our economy, improve education, and re-engineer government to better serve the people.

“It is time for real and enduring solutions to ensure that we are taking the right steps to create opportunities for our children and future generations.”

Formal filing for the office won’t begin until Feb. 3, 2014.

Abercrombie is the only other announced gubernatorial candidate.

Former Lt. Gov. Duke Aiona has been mentioned as a possible candidate for the Republican nomination.

A graduate of Pearl City High School, Ige holds a bachelor’s degree in electrical engineering and an MBA in decision sciences, both from the University of Hawaii.

According to his Senate profile, he serves as a member of the Hawaii Educational Networking Consortium, Waimano Ridge Task Force, Access Hawaii Committee Board, Mental Health Transformation State Incentive Grant Working Group and the Aiea/Pearl City Neighborhood Transit-Oriented Development Plan Advisory Committee.

He and his wife, Dawn, have three children.