# 2020 Hawaii Senate election

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The 2020 Hawaii Senate elections took place as part of the biennial 2020 United States elections. Hawaii voters elected state senators in 13 of the state's 25 senate districts. The primary elections on August 8, 2020, determined which candidates would appear on the November 3, 2020 general election ballot.
Following the previous election in 2018, Democrats had control of the Hawaii Senate with 24 seats to Republicans' one seat.

## Predictions

| Source | Ranking | As of |
| The Cook Political Report | Safe D | October 21, 2020 |

## Composition

| Affiliation | Party (Shading indicates majority caucus) | Party (Shading indicates majority caucus) | Total |
| Affiliation | Democratic | Republican | Total |
| Before election | 24 | 1 | 25 |
| Not up | 11 | 0 | 11 |
| Up | 13 | 1 | 14 |
| Results | 13 | 1 | 14 |
| After election | 24 | 1 | 25 |
| Change | | | |

## Summary

Summary of the November 3, 2020 Hawaii Senate election results :
| Party | Party | Candidates | Vote | % | Seats | Seats | Seats | Seats | Seats |
| Party | Party | Candidates | Vote | % | Before | Up | Won | After | +/– |
| | Democratic | 14 | 112,858 | 62.28 | 24 | 13 | 13 | 24 | |
| | Republican | 6 | 56,447 | 31.15 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | |
| | Libertarian | 1 | 6,172 | 3.41 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |
| | Aloha ʻĀina | 2 | 5,722 | 3.16 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |
| Total | Total | Total | 181,199 | 100% | 25 | 14 | 14 | 25 | |
| Source: State of Hawaii Office of Elections ||||||||||
Popular vote
Democratic
62.28%
Republican
31.15%
Libertarian
3.41%
Aloha ʻĀina
3.16% :
Senate seats (up for election)
Democratic
92.86%
Republican
7.14% :
Senate seats (in total)
Democratic
96%
Republican
4% :
| District | Incumbent | Party | Elected Senator | Party |
| 2nd | Russell Ruderman | Dem | Joy San Buenaventura | Dem |
| 5th | Gilbert Keith-Agaran | Dem | Gilbert Keith-Agaran | Dem |
| 8th | Ron Kouchi | Dem | Ron Kouchi | Dem |
| 9th | Stanley Chang | Dem | Stanley Chang | Dem |
| 10th | Les Ihara Jr. | Dem | Les Ihara Jr. | Dem |
| 11th | Brian Taniguchi | Dem | Brian Taniguchi | Dem |
| 13th | Karl Rhoads | Dem | Karl Rhoads | Dem |
| 14th | Donna Mercado Kim | Dem | Donna Mercado Kim | Dem |
| 15th | Glenn Wakai | Dem | Glenn Wakai | Dem |
| 16th* | Bennette Misalucha | Dem | Bennette Misalucha | Dem |
| 19th | Kurt Fevella | Rep | Kurt Fevella | Rep |
| 20th | Mike Gabbard | Dem | Mike Gabbard | Dem |
| 22nd | Donovan Dela Cruz | Dem | Donovan Dela Cruz | Dem |
| 25th | Laura Thielen | Dem | Chris Lee | Dem |
* 1 2 3 4 5 6 Without opposition, the general election was canceled and the incumbent was automatically reelected.
* ↑ Special election called due to the death of Sen. Breene Harimoto. Misalucha was the appointed incumbent.

## Retiring incumbents

Two incumbent senators (both Democrats) did not seek reelection in 2020.
* District 2: Russell Ruderman (D)
* District 25: Laura Thielen (D)

## Detailed results

Source for primary results: Source for general election results:

### District 2

Democratic primary
Hawaii's 2nd Senate District Democratic primary, 2020 :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % |
| | Democratic | Joy San Buenaventura | 8,072 | 78.3 |
| | Democratic | Smiley Burrows | 2,235 | 21.7 |
| Total votes | Total votes | Total votes | 10,307 | 100.0 |
General election
Hawaii's 2nd Senate District general election, 2020 :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % |
| | Democratic | Joy San Buenaventura | 14,225 | 75.2 |
| | Aloha ʻĀina Party | Ron Ka-Ipo | 4,694 | 24.8 |
| Total votes | Total votes | Total votes | 18,919 | 100.0 |
| | Democratic hold | Democratic hold | Democratic hold | Democratic hold |

### District 5

Hawaii's 5th Senate District general election, 2020 :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % |
| | Democratic | Gilbert Keith-Agaran (incumbent) | 13,891 | 64.3 |
| | Republican | Christy Gusman | 6,683 | 31.9 |
| | Aloha ʻĀina Party | Rynette Keen | 1,028 | 4.8 |
| Total votes | Total votes | Total votes | 21,602 | 100.0 |
| | Democratic hold | Democratic hold | Democratic hold | Democratic hold |

### District 8

Incumbent Democrat and Senate President Ron Kouchi was automatically reelected without opposition, with no votes recorded.

### District 9

Hawaii's 9th Senate District general election, 2020 :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % |
| | Democratic | Stanley Chang (incumbent) | 19,109 | 61.9 |
| | Republican | Sam Slom | 11,762 | 38.1 |
| Total votes | Total votes | Total votes | 30,871 | 100.0 |
| | Democratic hold | Democratic hold | Democratic hold | Democratic hold |

### District 10

Democratic primary
Hawaii's 10th Senate District Democratic primary, 2020 :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % |
| | Democratic | Les Ihara Jr. (incumbent) | 8,340 | 68.2 |
| | Democratic | Vicki Higgins | 2,576 | 21.1 |
| | Democratic | Jesus Arriola | 1,306 | 10.7 |
| Total votes | Total votes | Total votes | 12,222 | 100.0 |
General election Incumbent Democrat Les Ihara Jr. was automatically reelected without opposition, with no votes recorded.

### District 11

Incumbent Democrat Brian Taniguchi was automatically reelected without opposition, with no votes recorded.

### District 13

Hawaii's 13th Senate District Democratic primary, 2020 :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % |
| | Democratic | Karl Rhoads (incumbent) | 8,264 | 86.4 |
| | Democratic | Kevin "Shadow" McDonald | 1,302 | 13.6 |
| Total votes | Total votes | Total votes | 9,566 | 100.0 |
General election Incumbent Democrat Karl Rhoads was automatically reelected without opposition, with no votes recorded.

### District 14

Incumbent Democrat Donna Mercado Kim was automatically reelected without opposition, with no votes recorded.

### District 15

Incumbent Democrat Glenn Wakai was automatically reelected without opposition, with no votes recorded.

### District 16 (special)

Hawaii's 16th Senate District special general election, 2020 :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % |
| | Democratic | Bennette Misalucha (incumbent) | 11,508 | 52.7 |
| | Republican | Kelly Kitashima | 10,335 | 47.3 |
| Total votes | Total votes | Total votes | 21,843 | 100.0 |
| | Democratic hold | Democratic hold | Democratic hold | Democratic hold |

### District 19

Democratic primary
Hawaii's 19th Senate District Democratic primary, 2020 :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % |
| | Democratic | Rida Cabanilla | 4,553 | 63.0 |
| | Democratic | John Clark III | 2,677 | 37.0 |
| Total votes | Total votes | Total votes | 7,230 | 100.0 |
General election
Hawaii's 19th Senate District general election, 2020 :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % |
| | Republican | Kurt Fevella (incumbent) | 12,345 | 58.3 |
| | Democratic | Rida Cabanilla | 8,813 | 41.7 |
| Total votes | Total votes | Total votes | 21,158 | 100.0 |
| | Republican hold | Republican hold | Republican hold | Republican hold |

### District 20

Hawaii's 20th Senate District general election, 2020 :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % |
| | Democratic | Mike Gabbard (incumbent) | 13,967 | 69.4 |
| | Libertarian | Feena Bonoan | 6,172 | 30.6 |
| Total votes | Total votes | Total votes | 20,139 | 100.0 |
| | Democratic hold | Democratic hold | Democratic hold | Democratic hold |

### District 22

Democratic primary
Hawaii's 22nd Senate District Democratic primary, 2020 :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % |
| | Democratic | Donovan Dela Cruz (incumbent) | 8,533 | 85.6 |
| | Democratic | Thora-Jean Cuaresma | 1,439 | 14.4 |
| Total votes | Total votes | Total votes | 9,972 | 100.0 |
General election
Hawaii's 22nd Senate District general election, 2020 :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % |
| | Democratic | Donovan Dela Cruz (incumbent) | 13,612 | 70.3 |
| | Republican | John Miller | 5,755 | 29.7 |
| Total votes | Total votes | Total votes | 19,367 | 100.0 |
| | Democratic hold | Democratic hold | Democratic hold | Democratic hold |

### District 25

Hawaii's 25th Senate District general election, 2020 :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % |
| | Democratic | Chris Lee | 17,733 | 65.0 |
| | Republican | Kristina Kim-Marshall | 9,567 | 35.0 |
| Total votes | Total votes | Total votes | 27,300 | 100.0 |
| | Democratic hold | Democratic hold | Democratic hold | Democratic hold |