Former US Rep. Colleen Hanabusa Dead At 74

Colleen Hanabusa, who represented Hawaiʻi in the U.S. House of Representatives, died Thursday. She was 74.

Hanabusa, a Democrat, served twice in the House, from 2011 to 2015 and again from 2016 to 2019.

Gov. Josh Green on Friday ordered that the U.S. and Hawaiʻi flags be flown at half-staff at the State Capitol, all state offices and agencies, and all National Guard facilities in her honor until sunrise Monday.

“Jaime and I extend our deepest aloha and sympathy to the Hanabusa ʻohana and to all who loved Colleen,” Green said in a press release. “Colleen Hanabusa dedicated her life to serving the people of Hawaiʻi — from the Waiʻanae Coast she proudly called home, to the halls of the Hawaiʻi State Capitol and the United States Congress. She broke barriers as the first woman to serve as President of the Hawaiʻi State Senate and spent decades advocating for her community with strength, determination and heart. Her legacy of leadership and public service will continue to inspire generations to come.”

Hanabusa served as a state senator from 1999 to 2010, where she represented a district on Oʻahu’s Waiʻanae Coast where her family had long resided. She served as Senate president for two of those years, the first woman to hold the position.

Hanabusa was very nearly also elevated to the U.S. Senate in 2012 after the revered U.S. Sen. Daniel K. Inouye sent a deathbed letter to then-Gov. Neil Abercrombie asking that Hanabusa be appointed to Inouye’s Senate seat.

“I hope you will grant me my last wish,” Inouye wrote, but Abercrombie instead chose then-Lt. Gov. Brian Schatz to fill the seat.

Schatz then defeated Hanabusa in the August 2014 Democratic Primary by just 1,769 votes in an election that saw more than 230,000 votes cast. The race also was postponed for one week in two storm-damaged precincts on the Big Island, but Hanabusa did not challenge the election results.

Hanabusa then went on to run unsuccessfully for Hawaiʻi governor in 2018 against Gov. David Ige, and to run for mayor of Honolulu in 2020 in a large field that was won by Rick Blangiardi

In a statement Friday, Schatz said, “Colleen Hanabusa brought toughness, integrity, and deep aloha for Hawai‘i to everything she did. I was fortunate to see that firsthand when we served together in Congress.”

Leading The Rail Authority

More recently, Hanabusa was chair of the Honolulu Authority for Rapid Transportation. She resigned that position in September. She also chaired the State Salary Commission.

Hanabusa, a longtime labor attorney, is survived by her husband John Souza.

Kika Bukoski, chair of the board of directors for the Honolulu Authority for Rapid Transportation, worked with Hanabusa both on the HART board and also years ago when Bukoski was a state representative and Hanabusa was in the state Senate.

“I respected her tremendously, not just for her tenacity but she was also a very compassionate person,” Bukoski said. “Most people didn’t really see that side of her maybe, but she was very compassionate, very kind, very thoughtful. But very tenacious.”

Anthony Aalto, a member of the HART board, described Hanabusa as “an exemplary public servant.”

Aalto credited Hanabusa with lobbying the Honolulu City Council for critically important additional funding for the Honolulu rail project in 2021, which then cleared the way for an updated agreement between the city and the Federal Transit Administration the following year.

“If we hadn’t had that, we probably wouldn’t have convinced them that we had enough money to do the project,” Aalto said.

“She had a mind like a steel trap, she had an extraordinary memory,” Aalto said. “She was on top of every detail and kept voluminous notes, so she always knew what she was talking about.”

She also expected others to be as well prepared as she was, and she could be tough, Aalto said.

Hanabusa is being remembered fondly by her other colleagues from Hawaiʻi in Congress.

“She stood by me during some of my toughest battles; as a young mother in the chamber, she never once questioned that I could both lead and nurture,” Rep. Jill Tokuda said in a press release. “In so many ways, she was a trailblazer and a fighter who left an indelible mark in Washington, D.C., during her time in Congress. We are all better because of her leadership and service.”

“I had the privilege of working with Colleen in Congress, where together we worked to continue strengthening the trust relationship between the federal government and the Native Hawaiian community,” said Sen. Mazie Hirono. “I’m grateful to have known Colleen and to have worked alongside her, and I’m sending my aloha to her husband John, her family, and all who loved her.”

City and county flags will be lowered today through Sunday out of respect for Hanabusa’s passing.

“Colleen and I once stood on opposite sides of a mayoral race, but what grew from that experience was a relationship built on mutual respect and friendship,” Blangiardi said in a statement. “I came to appreciate her insight, her honesty, and her deep commitment to this community. I was grateful when she agreed to serve as Chair of the Honolulu Authority for Rapid Transportation Board. Her leadership and steady guidance were instrumental during an important time for the Skyline project.”

At the State Capitol Friday, Hanabusa’s official portrait in the Senate gallery was draped with lei, and several senators took to the floor to speak emotionally about losing their former colleague.

But the session was not without lighter moments, something Hanabusa (who had a great sense of humor) would no doubt have appreciated. Senate President Ron Kouchi, for instance, smiled as he described his predecessor as “a tough tita from Waiʻanae.”

This is a developing story. Please check back for more information.