30-Year Senator Wins Hawaii Primary
Liberal incumbent Sen. Daniel Akaka beat back a challenge from upstart Rep. Ed Case in Hawaii's Democratic primary.
Case conceded the race just before midnight Saturday, when returns showed he trailed 55 percent to 45 percent with roughly two-thirds of the expected vote counted. He trailed in every county, including those in his own 2nd District.
Whom Akaka faces in the general election remained a mystery after former Vietnam prisoner of war Jerry Coffee, who pulled out of the race because of health reasons, won the GOP nomination. Republicans have three days to name a replacement candidate.
Akaka had 128,927 votes to Case's 106,968, with only one precinct on Maui unreported.
"I want to thank Hawaii for supporting me all these years," he said earlier Saturday night. "It has been a tough campaign for me."
At Akaka's headquarters, the senator's supporters yelled "Case closed!" as they watched the congressman's concession speech on television, the Honolulu Advertiser reported.
Akaka, 82, has served in Congress for 30 years and drew on his experience to boost his candidacy.
Case, 53, who did not win on any of Hawaii's islands, had argued that the state needed a younger, more moderate senator.
"Losing is never easy," he said in his concession speech. "It doesn't mean the ideas we put forward in this campaign are not valid."
Case faced the difficult challenge of unseating Akaka, who campaigned on his consistent votes against the Iraq war and his congressional seniority as reasons voters should back him.
The race for Case's congressional seat developed into a free-for-all, with a dozen experienced candidates seeking the nomination.
Democratic-leaning Hawaii has never unseated an incumbent member of Congress since it became a state in 1959. But Case had centered his campaign around the idea that voters need to boot Akaka in favor of a more youthful representative who can start to build up seniority.
Some voters leaving the polls Saturday who supported Akaka said they valued his seniority and consistent record.
"Experience does matter. I didn't like the dirty comparisons" that Case made in TV ads, said Ted Awaya of Honolulu.
Others backing Case said they wanted a new face in the Senate.
"I think we need a change. We've been in a stalemate for too many years and we needed someone new," Nancy Clines said.
Akaka, who drew endorsements from leading Senate Democrats, held more than a 2-to-1 advantage in fundraising, collecting more than $2 million to Case's $817,000 by early this month.
Hawaii has had the lowest voter turnout in the nation, with even less participation in primaries. Turnout appeared to have improved over 2004's 40 percent, with more than 42 percent of the state's 655,741 registered voters casting ballots, including record early and absentee voting.