Ka Wai Ola - Office of Hawaiian Affairs, Volume 29, Number 10, 1 October 2012 — I MANA KA LEO EMPOWER YOUR VOICE [ARTICLE+ILLUSTRATION]

I MANA KA LEO EMPOWER YOUR VOICE

When Hawai'i voters go to the polls on Nov. 6, a familiar name will be missing from the ballot. With U.S. Sen. Daniel Akaka's retirement, andU.S. Rep. Mazie Hirono vacating her seat to run for Senate, half of the state's four seats on Capitol Hill are up for grabs. This comes at a time when federal money for Hawaiian programs are being threatened and Hawaiian entitlement programs are challenged by some federal elected ofhcials as being race based. For Native Hawaiians, this makes a candidate's support for Hawaiian issues and funding at the federal level even more crucial. In the islands, meanwhile, 27 candidates are vying for four seats on the OHA Board of Trustees. On Kaua'i, 11 candidates are running for the seat held since 2000 by Trustee Donald Cataluna, who decided not to seek re-election.

Among the new challenges for trustees in the coming years is the ownership and management of mostly waterfront lands in Kaka'ako, whieh the state transferred to OHA earlier this year to settle a long-standing debt. In addition to asset management, OHA is also an advocate for Native Hawaiians. And in the months leading up to the primary and general elections, OHA has undertaken a voter-registration campaign to encourage more young people to exercise their right to vote. The Hawaiian Voice, Hawaiian Vote campaign took to the radio, TV and web in an effort to register Native Hawaiian voters. If you haven't signed up to vote, there's still time. You ean register by Oct. 8, and registration forms are available at oha. org/vote. If you vote, you have a say. Let your voice be heard in the 2012 election.

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