PHOTOS: Lingle Begins 2012 Senate Campaign in Haiku

By Madeline Ziecker

Linda Lingle speaking about her Senate campaign in Haiku. Photo by Madeline Ziecker.

Former Hawaii governor Linda Lingle (R) began the first official day of her campaign for a seat in the US Senate by visiting some local businesses in the Haiku Cannery on January 10, 2012.

Lingle’s visit to Haiku was casual and unannounced, but to each of the shops she visited she brought an entourage of campaign supporters and her own camera crew.

An intimate reception was held around 5 p.m. at Noni Biotech International, a noni products

Linda Lingle conversing with Haiku Style shop owner Claire Garrigue.

export company in Haiku which recently won a Presidential Certificate for Exports from the Secretary of Commerce, for functioning as one of the 20 most successful export businesses in the US.

Around 20 guests attended the reception to hear Lingle speak about her plans for her campaign and the issues she would focus on  if she won. Keoni Woo of the Native Hawaiian Chamber of Commerce was present along with some prominent Maui business owners in coconut trade, noni production, and solar energy.

From left: Marie-Laure Ankaoua- CEO of Noni Biotech International, Linda Lingle, and Claire Garrigue - owner of Haiku Style. Photo by Madeline Ziecker.

In her speech at the small reception, Lingle highlighted four elements of reform which she promises to execute  if she wins a seat in Washington DC: tax reform, regulatory reform (especially in the job market), immigration reform, and lawsuit reform (those who file lawsuits and lose should receive a penalty).

Lingle spoke about the issue of US foreign energy and oil dependency.

“Hawaii is the most oil dependent state in the US; as a nation we need to develop our own energy resources. We should be a net exporter of energy.”

Linda Lingle campaign poster. Photo by Madeline Ziecker.

She also expressed her enthusiasm in being endorsed by the State of Hawaii Organization of Police Officers (SHOPO):

“The number one focus of any elected government official is the safety of their community and for this I am glad to have the support of the people who are out there every day ensuring our safety.”

Lingle believes that she can “bring something unique to the Senate from Hawaii – a focused aloha spirit.”

The reception ended around 6 p.m., when Lingle was reminded by members of her campaign team that she had a flight to Hilo to catch.