Kaniela Ing

Representative Kaniela Ing
Member of the Hawaii House of Representatives from the 11th district
Incumbent
Assumed office November 7, 2012
Preceded by	George Fontaine
Personal details
Born	December 24, 1988 Maui, Hawaii
Political party	Democratic
Alma mater	University of Hawaii, Kamehameha Schools
Profession	American politician
Religion	Christian
Website	www.kanielaing.com

Mark Kaniela Saito Ing is an American politician and current member of the Hawaii State House of Representatives. He serves as Chair of the Ocean, Marine Resources, and Hawaiian Affairs committee, making him the youngest Chairperson in Hawaii's legislative history.

Ing was born and raised on the island of Maui, Hawaii and was elected to serve the 11th House District (South Maui: Kihei, Wailea, Makena) as a first-time candidate in 2012. Ing won the Democratic primary election against three better-known candidates with 43% of the vote.^[1] Ing then defeated incumbent Representative George Fontaine (R) in the general election with 61% of the vote to the incumbent's 35%.^[2]

Ing was re-elected in the 2014 primary by the largest margin of any contested race in Hawaii (82-12-6) and in the General election with the highest percentage won by a democrat ever in the South Maui district (72%).

Policy focus

According to a statement on his legislative website

"Ing believes that long-term planning must be emphasized more often in government with specific focus on education, sustainable and renewable practices, and economic diversification. As a new-age progressive, Ing seeks to usher in a new era of public service and restore public trust in government by promoting clean government and election reform policies. He believes that in order to bolster our local economy and advance a fair society, we must care for disadvantaged populations, invest in education, encourage sustainable agriculture and energy, all without taking our natural environment, our diverse cultural heritage, and market efficiencies for granted."

^[3]

Legislative achievements

Kihei High School

South Maui has been in dire need for a community public high school for decades. Before 2012, legislators sought funding in the amounts of $20 million or less for design and planning, but failed. Upon election, Ing made funding the high school his community priority and fought for the entire $130 million for a design-build implementation. This approach would bring the project straight to construction and save the state tens of millions of dollars. He elicited public testimony via grassroots community tabling and a tear-and-send testimony postcard that he sent out to his constituents addressed to the House Finance Committee. Ing was successful in securing the full $130 million in 2012, resulting in the state's largest single district capitol improvement allocation that year. The high school is currently waiting funding release from the Governor and is expected to break ground in 2016.

Same-day voter registration

Ing initially ran for office with the promise to foster more public trust and involvement in government. Upon election, Ing set his focus on good government and election modernization efforts. One of the most notable achievements of his first term was enacting same-day voter registration in Hawaii, marking the single most meaningful election reform in Hawaii in decades. His bill "increases turnout, alleviates pollworker burden, and prevents voter fraud in Hawaii by eliminating arbitrary registration deadlines based on technological limitations that no longer exist." The bill was signed into law on June 30, 2014.

The new law will allow voters to register and vote during a single visit at all early-polling places in Hawaii starting 2016, and at all polling places on election day in 2018. The measure is estimated to increase voting turnout by 6-8%.

Personal background

Kaniela Ing comes from a diverse background which encompasses many facets of Hawaii's immigration and plantation history. On his mother's side, Ing's grandmother's parents arrived in Hawaii from Portugal and Spain, and his grandfather from Japan. Years later, they met at the Statehood celebration on Maui in 1959. They had three children including Ing's mother Annette Saito.

On his father's side, Ing comes from Native Hawaiian, Chinese, Dutch, Irish, and Russian descent. Ing never knew his grandfather, but was very close with his great-grandparents, who hanai'ed and raised his father, Mark Kaulana Ing, from birth.

Ing was raised in a modest home on Maui. When his father unexpectedly died, Ing worked as a harvester in for Maui Land and Pineapple, every summer as a teenager, to help his single-mother raise his three siblings. This work ethic carried with him through adulthood as he and his older brother became the first on either side of the family to obtain college degrees.

Ing attended public schools, Kamehameha Schools Maui, Maui Community College, the University of Hawaii at Manoa, and American University in Washington D.C. for graduate school. He has worked in various roles in the community with business, government, and the non-profit sectors.^[4]

References

1. "2012 Election: 11th House - Ing vs. Fontaine - Mauinews.com | News, Sports, Jobs, Visitor's Information". The Maui News. 2012-08-12. Retrieved 2013-02-20.
2. Winning Formula
3. "Policy". Kanielaing.com. Retrieved 2013-02-20.
4. Aloha and Welcome!