Matthew S. LoPresti is an American politician who served as a member of the Hawaii House of Representatives for District 41 (Ewa, Ewa Beach, Ewa Gentry, Ewa Villages, Hoakalei, Ocean Pointe). He previously served from January 2015 to January 2019. He was a candidate for state Senate 19th district in 2018. In January 2021, LoPresti helped found the bicameral Progressive Legislative Caucus and served as its chair. He was defeated in the 2022 Hawaii House of Representatives election, 2022 elections by Republican David A. Alcos, III.

Education

LoPresti earned a Bachelor of Arts in philosophy, Bachelor of Arts in history, and Master of Arts in philosophy from the University of Toledo, followed by a PhD in philosophy from the University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa.

Career

LoPresti is an Associate Professor of Philosophy and Humanities at Hawaii Pacific University, Hawai‘i Pacific University. He has taught in various capacities at the University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa, Chaminade University of Honolulu, Chaminade University, Kapiolani Community College, West Virginia University, University of Toledo, and Antioch College, Antioch College's Buddhist Studies Program in London, England and Bodh Gaya, Bodhgaya, India. In 2020, he was invited to Jinan, China to present a speech to the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences entitled "Nurturing an Ecological Economy: a role for traditional Hawaiian and Chinese values." LoPresti was elected to consecutive two-year terms on the executive committee of the Sierra Club, Sierra Club's Oahu Group, where he served as Vice Chair. He was also elected to a two-year term on the ʻEwa Beach, Hawaii, ‘Ewa Neighborhood Board in 2011. During the 2018 Hawaii House of Representatives election, 2018 elections, LoPresti gained notice for a video recording depicting his tampering with an opponent's campaign flyer, for which he later apologized. He previously denied taking down an opponent's political signs in the 2016 elections. In 2022, LoPresti served as Chair of the House Committee on Veterans, Military, & International Affairs, & Culture and the Arts. He was also a and member of the O'ahu Metropolitan Planning Organization. LoPresti was arrested for driving under the influence on June 17, 2022 by troopers near Ewa Beach on the Hawaiian Island of O'ahu. The charges were dismissed later that year.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Lopresti, Matthew Year of birth missing (living people) Living people 21st-century American politicians Democratic Party members of the Hawaii House of Representatives Place of birth missing (living people) University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa alumni University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa faculty University of Toledo alumni Chaminade University of Honolulu faculty