Kai Kahele

Kaialiʻi Kahele (born March 28, 1974) is an American politician, educator, and commercial pilot who served as the U.S. representative for Hawaii's 2nd congressional district from 2021 to 2023. From 2016 to 2020, he served in the Hawaii Senate from the 1st District. In 2024, he was elected as a trustee to the Office of Hawaiian Affairs, with fellow board members electing him as chair. Kahele is a member of the Democratic Party and the son of Hawaii Senate member Gil Kahele. In January 2019, Kahele announced he would challenge Tulsi Gabbard in Hawaii's 2nd congressional district in 2020, but Gabbard dropped out of the race to focus on her campaign for the Democratic presidential nomination. Kahele won the congressional nomination on August 8, 2020. He won the general election and became the second Native Hawaiian to serve as a member of Congress representing Hawaii since statehood, after Daniel Akaka. After one term in Congress, Kahele ran for governor in 2022. He was defeated in the Democratic primary by Lieutenant Governor Josh Green. He made a political comeback in 2024, winning an open seat on the Office of Hawaiian Affairs Board of Trustees outright in the primary election by securing 56.7% of the vote.