James R. "Duke" Aiona Jr. (born June 8, 1955) is an American politician and jurist who served as the tenth
lieutenant governor of Hawaii
The lieutenant governor of Hawaii ( haw, Hope kiaʻāina o Hawaiʻi) is the assistant chief executive of the U.S. state of Hawaii and its various agencies and departments, as provided in the Article V, Sections 2 though 6 of the Constitution of H ...
under
Linda Lingle
Linda Lingle (''née'' Cutter; June 4, 1953) is an American politician, who was the sixth governor of Hawaii from 2002 until 2010. She was the first Republican governor of Hawaii since 1962. Lingle was also the state's first female and first J ...
from 2002 to 2010. A
Republican
Republican can refer to:
Political ideology
* An advocate of a republic, a type of government that is not a monarchy or dictatorship, and is usually associated with the rule of law.
** Republicanism, the ideology in support of republics or agains ...
, he also served both as an attorney and a judge for the state prior to becoming lieutenant governor.
Aiona was the Republican nominee for
Governor of Hawaii
The governor of Hawaii ( haw, Ke Kiaʻaina o Hawaiʻi) is the head of government of the U.S. state of Hawaii and its various agencies and departments, as provided in the Hawaii State Constitution Article V, Sections 1 through 6. It is a direct ...
in the
2010 election, but was defeated by
Democrat
Democrat, Democrats, or Democratic may refer to:
Politics
*A proponent of democracy, or democratic government; a form of government involving rule by the people.
*A member of a Democratic Party:
**Democratic Party (United States) (D)
**Democratic ...
Neil Abercrombie
Neil Abercrombie (born June 26, 1938) is an American politician who served as the seventh governor of Hawaii from 2010 to 2014. He is a member of the Democratic Party.
Born in Buffalo, New York, Abercrombie is a graduate of Union College and th ...
in the general election. He was the Republican nominee once again in the
2014 election, but lost to Democrat
David Ige
David Yutaka Ige (; born January 15, 1957) is an American politician and engineer who served as the eighth governor of Hawaii from 2014 to 2022. A Democrat, he served in the Hawaii State Senate from 1995 to 2014 and the Hawaii House of Repres ...
. In June 2022, Aiona announced that he would be run again for a third time in the Republican nomination for the
2022 election, which he lost to Democrat
Josh Green, the incumbent Hawaii Lieutenant Governor.
Background
James Aiona was born in
Pearl City
Pearl City is an unincorporated community and census-designated place (CDP) located in the Ewa District and City & County of Honolulu on the Island of Oahu. As of the 2010 Census, the CDP had a total population of 47,698. Pearl City is located ...
, Hawaiʻi. He is of
Hawaiian and
Portuguese
Portuguese may refer to:
* anything of, from, or related to the country and nation of Portugal
** Portuguese cuisine, traditional foods
** Portuguese language, a Romance language
*** Portuguese dialects, variants of the Portuguese language
** Portu ...
descent on his father's side and
Chinese
Chinese can refer to:
* Something related to China
* Chinese people, people of Chinese nationality, citizenship, and/or ethnicity
**''Zhonghua minzu'', the supra-ethnic concept of the Chinese nation
** List of ethnic groups in China, people of ...
on his mother's side. His mother worked as an elementary school teacher and his father worked as a life insurance agent. He attended
Saint Louis School
Saint Louis School, located in the neighborhood of Kaimuki in Honolulu, Hawaii, is a historic Roman Catholic college preparatory school for boys. It was founded in 1846 to serve Catholics in the former Kingdom of Hawaii. Located within the Roman ...
, a local academy of the
Diocese of Honolulu. Upon graduating high school, Aiona played basketball at
University of the Pacific in
Stockton, California and pursued a bachelor of arts degree in political science, which he received from there in 1977. Aiona returned to Hawaiʻi and graduated from the
William S. Richardson School of Law
The William S. Richardson School of Law is the professional graduate law school of the University of Hawaii at Manoa. Located in Honolulu, Hawaii, the school is named after its patriarch, former Hawaii State Supreme Court Chief Justice William ...
at the
University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa
The University of Hawaii at Mānoa (University of Hawaii—Mānoa, UH Mānoa, Hawai'i, or simply UH) is a public land-grant research university in Mānoa, a neighborhood in Honolulu, Hawaii. It is the flagship campus of the University of Haw ...
in 1981.
He began his legal career at the
City and County of Honolulu
Honolulu County (officially known as the City and County of Honolulu, formerly Oahu County) is a consolidated city–county in the U.S. state of Hawaii. The city–county includes both the city of Honolulu (the state's capital and largest cit ...
as a deputy prosecutor, and was appointed to the Hawaiʻi State Judiciary in 1990 as a Family Court judge. In 1996, while serving as Circuit Court judge, Aiona became the first administrative judge and primary architect of the Drug Court Program in Hawaiʻi. The program gives non-violent offenders a chance to stay out of prison through active and effective drug rehabilitation.
In 1977, while attending law school, he met Vivian Welsh at a dance in Waikīkī. They married in 1981. They have two sons, Kulia and Makana; and two daughters, Ohulani and Kaimilani.
As lieutenant governor, Aiona was paid $117,312 ''per annum''.
Electoral history
Aiona and Governor
Linda Lingle
Linda Lingle (''née'' Cutter; June 4, 1953) is an American politician, who was the sixth governor of Hawaii from 2002 until 2010. She was the first Republican governor of Hawaii since 1962. Lingle was also the state's first female and first J ...
became Hawaii's first Republican administration to win a second term, and they won with the largest margin of victory in any gubernatorial race in the history of the state.
[http://hawaii.gov/ltgo/lg] Aiona ran to succeed Lingle as governor in 2010, but lost to
Neil Abercrombie
Neil Abercrombie (born June 26, 1938) is an American politician who served as the seventh governor of Hawaii from 2010 to 2014. He is a member of the Democratic Party.
Born in Buffalo, New York, Abercrombie is a graduate of Union College and th ...
; he ran for governor again in 2014, losing to Democrat
David Ige
David Yutaka Ige (; born January 15, 1957) is an American politician and engineer who served as the eighth governor of Hawaii from 2014 to 2022. A Democrat, he served in the Hawaii State Senate from 1995 to 2014 and the Hawaii House of Repres ...
.
References
External links
James Aiona for Governor''official campaign site''
Official Facebook*
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{{DEFAULTSORT:Aiona, Duke
1955 births
20th-century American lawyers
21st-century American politicians
American jurists of Chinese descent
American people of Native Hawaiian descent
American people of Portuguese descent
American prosecutors
Candidates in the 2010 United States elections
Candidates in the 2014 United States elections
City and town attorneys in the United States
Hawaii people of Chinese descent
Hawaii people of Portuguese descent
Hawaii politicians of Chinese descent
Hawaii Republicans
Hawaii state court judges
Lieutenant Governors of Hawaii
Living people
Native Hawaiian politicians
Politicians from Honolulu
University of the Pacific (United States) alumni
University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa alumni
Saint Louis School alumni
People from Pearl City, Hawaii
Asian conservatism in the United States