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About David Ige

October 01, 2014

Born and raised in Pearl City, David grew up in a working class family. His mother was a nurse and dental assistant, while his father served in the 100th Battalion/442nd Regimental Combat team and was a steelworker on construction projects. Being the fifth of six sons in his family, David understands first-hand the challenges that many working families face in Hawaii.

David graduated from Pearl City High School and earned a bachelor’s of science degree in electrical engineering and an MBA in decision sciences from the University of Hawaii at Manoa. While attending the University of Hawaii, he met his wife Dawn, a Unit 6 member, and together they raised three children Lauren, Amy and Matthew.

David worked as an engineer and project manager in the private sector for 34 years. He is experienced with technology, telecommunications, networks and responsible public policy. He brought this knowledge and experience to his work in the legislature and is now ready to use his experiences as governor.

David has represented the Pearl City and Aiea communities in the Hawaii State House of Representatives from 1986-1994 and then was elected to the Hawaii State Senate. Most recently, he served as chair of the Senate Committee on Ways and Means. He previously served in numerous leadership positions and chair of the Senate Committees on Health, Education and Technology, Higher Education and Commerce and Consumer Affairs among others. With his extensive legislative experience and comprehensive understanding of state government, David will continue to improve lives in our communities and move Hawaii forward!

Strong support of union values

As a legislator, David has demonstrated his commitment to sound fiscal management. He believes the state should honor its current financial obligations before expending funds for new programs. His voting record showed consistent support for HGEA members.

Realizing that HGEA retirees or those nearing retirement count on their pension in their retirement years, David voted against taxing their pension even when others were recommending the taxation to balance the state’s budget. Despite new programs introduced over the past four years by the governor, David continued to hold his ground to protect HGEA retirees and members.

When the ability of the state to provide health and retirement benefits was being threatened, David intervened with other legislators to ensure the long-term sustainability of the state’s Employee Retirement System and the Employer-Union Trust Fund.

While David preserved these contractual obligations for HGEA members, he also looked at ways to restore and expand public sector jobs such as inspectors and other regulatory oversight positions which are vital to our communities.

Fun Facts about David

  • Elected as Pearl City High School’s Student Body President
  • Led his varsity tennis team to a championship
  • Graduated fifth in his class of more than 500 students
  • Accepted to Massachusetts Institute of Technology, but turned it down so his brothers could afford to go to college
  • Hawaii Business Magazine named David one of the university’s Top 10 MBA students.
  • Worked as an engineer for GTE Hawaiian Tel for more than 18 years.
  • Enjoys running; ran the marathon in 4 hours and 18 minutes

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