New Poll: Case, Djou Tied In Special Election

HONOLULU -- A recent poll shows Republican Charles Djou is tied with Democrat Ed Case for the lead in Oahu’s special congressional election, according to The Atlantic magazine.

The poll, which The Atlantic said was conducted by the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee, puts Democrat Colleen Hanabusa in third place, just a few points behind Djou and Case.

In January, when KITV4 and the Honolulu Star-Bulletin conducted the last poll that went public, Case was the clear leader. The former congressman had 37 percent of the vote, followed by Senate President Hanabusa in second place with close to 25 percent. Councilman Djou, a Republican, trailed in third with 17 percent of the vote.

But according to a more recent poll reported by Atlantic magazine, Case and Djou are now tied with 32 percent of the vote, with Hanabusa in third place at 27 percent. About nine percent of the respondents were undecided, Atlantic reported, citing a Democratic source who’d seen results of a Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee poll.

Djou is elated with the results, saying, “Momentum has clearly shifted in favor of our campaign and this is certainly something that I'm very excited about."

"It clearly shows that our message is resonating with the people of Hawaii. That Congress is taking our nation in the wrong direction and we need a greater sense of fiscal responsibility," Djou said.

Hanabusa sent an e-mail to her supporters saying, "These numbers show that this campaign is on the move."

Even though the numbers show Hanabusa in third place, her campaign manager Eric Hamakawa told KITV4 he's happy with the poll's results, because he said they show Hanabusa's support growing and Case's campaign shrinking.

“I think we’re going to be peaking at the right time, in about three weeks,” he said, referring to April 30, when mail-in ballots will be sent to urban Honolulu voters.

In an e-mail, Case said the poll was probably conducted about two weeks ago, when his TV ads were not on the air and his opponents’ ads were. And he said the poll was likely taken before Hanabusa pulled her controversial TV spot that her opponents labeled misleading.

"I'd expect if a poll were done today, we'd be in the lead, Charles second and Colleen third," Case told KITV4.

Atlantic Monthly reported the congressional poll was taken by the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee. Andy Stone, the D.C.C.C.’s western regional press secretary, would not confirm the poll's results.

Asked if Democrats are worried about the rising support for Republican Djou, Stone said, "Our focus from day one has been on Charles Djou and making sure Hawaii voters know about his record of supporting corporate special interests over the needs of Hawaii families."

The poll shows more people are making up their minds as the election approaches. In January, KITV4’s poll found 21 percent of likely voters were undecided. The more recent survey found 9 percent undecided.

This is a winner-take-all election, meaning there's no primary. The candidate who gets the most votes wins outright, even if he or she wins by just one vote. The results will be announced May 22.

The winner will fill the seat vacated by Neil Abercrombie, who resigned earlier this year to run for governor. Abercrombie’s term expires at the end of the year. Regardless of who wins the special election, all three will could compete for the next full two-year term in the U.S. House, which begins in January of 2011.

The district, which stretches from Hawaii Kai to Mililani, last elected a Republican, Pat Saiki, in 1988. Abercrombie, a Democrat, has held the seat since 1990.

What Charles Djou stands for :

Economy
Getting the economy back on track begins with a clear vision. I believe that every resident of Hawai‘i who is looking for a job should be able to find one. I have always made it a priority to lower taxes because reducing the tax burden allows you to keep more of your money for your family, to grow your business and to buy goods and services, which in turn fosters small business and job growth in our community. That is why I have never voted for a tax increase. You are a better steward of your money and can do more for the economy than the government. I will continue this long standing fight in Washington. A reduced tax burden must be offset by the elimination of government waste, which is symbolized by the widespread practice of using earmarks to add unnecessary spending to an already bloated federal budget. I will work hard to ensure that Hawai‘i receives the funds it deserves but also believe that those funds should come to us fairly through an open and transparent budget process following hearings and testimony. I will never sneak my own unexamined earmarks into the federal budget and I will fight earmarks pushed by other congressmen. I am the only member of the City Council to have never accepted a trip paid for by the City taxpayers. I will bring this strong sense of integrity and ethics with me to Washington.

Healthcare
I recognize that healthcare costs are increasing too fast in our country and that too many of our fellow citizens remain uninsured. I will consider any sensible idea for making healthcare work better in America. But any change to our healthcare system must address the spiraling costs and insure more Americans without limiting heath options or harming the doctor-patient relationship. For these reasons, I support market-based healthcare reforms that work. What is needed is tort reform. I have long supported a limit on non-economic damages for medical malpractice. Tort reform is long over due and I will fight for a $250,000 cap or three times economic damages for medical malpractice awards to help reduce the need for “defensive” medicine and bring down the cost of malpractice insurance. I also support allowing the sale of inter-state health insurance. Just two carriers provide over 90% of all health insurance in Hawaii, which reduces competition. I support allowing inter-state health insurance sales. Finally, we need to rethink the way we tax health insurance. The current structure of health insurance in the U.S. is an anachronism dating back to WWII. Rather than have corporations as the sole providers of health insurance, we should instead allow for individual tax deduction of health insurance and make the health insurance market a more “normal” individual choice.

Ethics
When people have trust in their elected officials, they have trust in their government. I believe that the personal integrity of elected officials is fundamental to our democracy. All major public policy goals start with an open and honest government. After the series of scandals that tarnished the Honolulu Liquor Commission, I called for the wholesale reform and improved oversight of the Commission. When several Liquor Commission inspectors were convicted of bribery charges, I successfully obtained an audit of the Liquor Commission and called for the firing of the Liquor Commission Administrator and Chief Investigator. After months of intense work, my efforts helped secure the Liquor Commission Administrator’s removal and the voluntary departure of the Chief Investigator. Today this agency is rebuilding the trust that it lost. I also successfully fought to give the Ethics Commission the power to issue civil fines for violations of the ethics code and championed stronger ethics rules that have reduced conflicts of interest in Honolulu.

National Security
Our uniformed men and women make up the most capable fighting force in the world and Hawai‘i has a unique and critical role in our national security. Our island chain is home to key military bases and stations, thousands of military personnel and various strategic operations. To cope with the diverse and challenging threats facing our nation, America must maintain its strong military and Hawai‘i must retain its central role in military preparedness. I currently serve as a Captain in the United States Army Reserve. I understand that we must combat terrorism wherever it is found, whether in Iran, the Pakistan-Afghanistan border regions or in industrialized cities around the world. At home, I support a national plan to protect America’s infrastructure and keep our communities safe. That plan begins with increased security measures for our airports, ports and land borders.

Environment and Energy
I understand that Hawai‘i’s beautiful natural environment is a treasure that must be preserved for future generations. I have been an outspoken advocate for recycling and energy conservation. I successfully fought to bring curbside recycling to Oahu and have called for reducing the City’s energy use. I will continue those efforts as your Congressman. I am committed to a long-term energy strategy for America and Hawai‘i that brings us independence from foreign oil resources. I will fight for federal support of Hawai‘i’s alternative energy projects and will only support environmentally-sound and responsible efforts to enlarge America’s domestic supply of oil, natural gas and nuclear power.

Education
We need a reformed education system that puts children first. I believe we must turn education right-side up by making principals and teachers accountable for our children’s education and empowering parental involvement in schools. Principals in turn must have the resources they need, including adequate funding and the ability to remove underperforming teachers. The cost of the Educational bureaucracies must be reduced to insure that education dollars are spent in the classroom and teachers have the tools they need to educate our children, including continuing teacher education and training. That’s how good school systems work. We cannot continue to limit our children’s potential in school systems that don’t teach.

Faith and Family
Strong families raise successful children and keep communities together. I am candid about my own faith and my belief that we need a deeper, more substantive appreciation of the role that faith plays in American life. We cannot legislate healthy families, good parenting skills or a sound moral environment and we should not try. But we can do more in the public square to help parents through the increased challenges they face today by giving them the tools they need to succeed. As a husband and father of three, I know that strong families and a diverse community form the bedrock of a strong Hawai`i and strong America.

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