Hawaii Lt. Gov. Sylvia Luke announces she will not seek re-election

Hawaii Lt. Gov. Sylvia Luke announced today that she will not run for reelection this year, after months of speculation that she would be the subject of an investigation by the state attorney general over allegations that a powerful lawmaker accepted an illegal campaign donation.

“This weekend, after a long discussion with my family and close friends, I decided not to seek re-election to a second term as lieutenant governor,” Luke said in a written statement.

“This was a difficult decision. Serving the people of Hawaii has been an honor and my family has always supported my passion for this work. But the last three months have been difficult, making the rigors of campaigning exceptionally heavy on my family. Although I have always been a fighter, I cannot tolerate the toll they are paying.

“I plan to continue doing the job I was elected to do, providing my best efforts to the people of Hawaii every day.”

In a statement today, Governor Josh Green said, “I recognize and respect the decision made by the Lieutenant Governor not to seek re-election. Sylvia’s service to the State of Hawaii for more than two decades leaves no doubt how much she cares about the people of Hawaii.”

“Over the past three years, LG has made great strides in helping our keiki access universal preschool, which has helped many local families.”

On Jan. 20, the state Department of the Attorney General said it was opening an investigation into the unnamed politician who was named in a separate federal corruption probe and allegedly accepted $35,000 in a paper bag.

The state attorney general’s decision to open an investigation was a reversal for the office, which had said weeks earlier that it would wait until a federal investigation into public corruption was completed. But on Jan. 16, the U.S. Department of Justice told state officials that it would provide the state with “evidence regarding an alleged incident involving an unnamed ‘influential lawmaker’ who accepted approximately $35,000 in funds” in 2022, according to a news release from Attorney General Anne Lopez’s office.

Four days later, Gov. Josh Green and Lopez announced that they had “jointly determined that a state investigation into this matter” was in the public interest.

On February 9, other media outlets reported that she might be under investigation, but she insisted she did nothing illegal and did not accept $35,000 in a paper bag.

The transaction involving the unknown politician was recorded at a dinner in January 2022 by former state Rep. Ty JK Cullen, who was working as an FBI informant after he and former Senate Majority Leader J. Kalani English were arrested by the FBI for accepting bribes from Milton J. Choy, the late owner of a Honolulu wastewater treatment company who controlled their work.

Cullen and English will not say who took the money or reveal the people responsible for giving it. English was sentenced to 40 months in federal prison in July 2022 and Cullen was sentenced to 2 years in April 2023. Cullen received less prison time than English due to his “substantial assistance” to the U.S. Department of Justice.

The corruption of Cullen and English and the ongoing federal public corruption investigation have tarnished the state Legislature. Lawmakers in both chambers said publicly before the 2026 session began Jan. 20 that they did not take the money and did not know who did.

The statements came after retired federal public defender Alexander Silvert asked state lawmakers in the first week of January to convene a committee with subpoena and contempt powers to investigate the matter involving the unnamed lawmaker and donors. Silvert sent the petition and letters to lawmakers to House Speaker Nadine Nakamura, Senate President Ron Kouchi and each state legislator individually. The petition had more than 929 verified signatures in Hawaii.

In 2022, Luke was the state representative representing the Makiki region and chair of the powerful House Finance Committee when she won a close race to become the Democratic Party’s nominee for lieutenant governor.

During the fallout from the English-Cullen scandal earlier that year, “I am meticulous in reporting them because I believe the public has a right to know who is contributing. Contributions should not affect policy decisions. My policy decisions are based on what is best for the taxpayers of our state.”

After Luke acknowledged in February that she could be the target of the attorney general’s investigation, Hawaii asked whether she violated state law by failing to report $16,000 in campaign contributions.

On February 7, Luke amended her 2022 campaign expense statements to report $10,000 in donations that she said she returned to two people connected to Cullen in March 2022, as well as a $6,000 donation from another businessman that she had kept. Those donations were not reported to the commission due to an oversight by the campaign, she said.

Lopez has repeatedly declined to name the subject or subjects of his office’s ongoing investigation.

In a statement after Luke’s announcement today, Lopez told the Star-Advertiser that his department does not comment on investigations.

“Political decisions regarding the election or candidacy have no impact on our independent review. We are committed to transparency and will share information publicly when appropriate,” Lopez said. “Out of respect for the integrity of the process, we have no further comment at this time.”

The cloud over Luke this year provided an opportunity for Kauai Mayor Derek Kawakami, who announced last month that . Kawakami was first elected mayor in 2018 and will serve out the remainder of his final term this year.