Aloha! It has been my honor and privilege to have served ‘Aiea and Pearl City in the State Legislature for the past 20 years. But I’m also a proud husband and a proud father. I’m a small business owner and have been deployed overseas as a member of the Hawai‘i Army National Guard.
Fighting for opportunities is a central theme for our family. My grandparents came here as immigrant plantation laborers and it’s through the public schools — for me, the Pearl City public schools and UH — that our dreams have come true.
The opportunity that Grandpa came to Hawai‘i for is the kind of opportunity that I want to make sure exists for generations.
Government can be a partner and it can be a facilitator. I know this as someone who has been in our Legislature, fighting for a better economy and a more affordable Hawai‘i. But I also know this as a small business owner. And it’s that kind of perspective that I think is lacking in Washington — it’s this balanced notion of how to have a functional government, a productive economy and a high quality of life.
But we can’t get there with partisan gridlock and we can’t get there with people willing to shut down government.
In Congress, I will work hard to protect Social Security and Medicare by fighting to create better paying jobs, by closing the gap between super rich and everyone else, by making college more affordable and by strengthening the middle class.
I believe in working together and I have a strong history of collaborating. That’s why you need me to work together with Senator Schatz, Senator Hirono, and Congresswoman Gabbard, and be able to solidify this with a unified team.
People are seeing that we are the campaign with forward momentum. Together, we can ensure that the dream for a better life that drew my family and your families here becomes a reality for all.
I am on your side, every time, and I humbly ask for your vote. — Mahalo, Mark Takai
