Attorneys General of Hawaii administer their duties from the Territorial Building in downtown Honolulu.

The Attorney General of Hawaii is the chief legal and law enforcement officer of the State of Hawaii. He or she is appointed by the governor and is responsible for advising the various agencies and departments of the executive branch, legislative branch and judicial branch of the state government. He or she is also responsible for the prosecution of offenses to Hawaii Revised Statutes and advocate the basic rights of Hawaii residents. Historically, the Attorney General of Hawaii has been from either the Hawaii Democratic Party or Hawaii Republican Party.

Line of Succession

According to the Constitution of Hawaii, the attorney general becomes acting governor upon the absence of both the Governor of Hawaii and Lieutenant Governor of Hawaii from the state. The most recent case in which the attorney general became acting governor was from August 25 to September 3, 2004 when Mark J. Bennett replaced Governor Linda Lingle and Lieutenant Governor James Aiona, who left the state to attend the 2004 Republican National Convention in New York City.

Controversies

With the failed 1998 confirmation by the Hawaii State Senate of popular sitting attorney general Margery Bronster, as political payback for her actions to reform the corrupt Kamehameha Schools/Bishop Estate whose trustees were friends of various powerful legislators, many Hawaii residents called for the right to elect the attorney general. Several attempts failed to create the constitutional amendment.

List of Attorneys General

• Margery Bronster, Democrat, 1995-1998
• Earl I. Anzai, Democrat, 1999-2002
• Mark J. Bennett, Republican, 2003-Present

Resources

• Constitution of the State of Hawaii
• Office of the Attorney General of Hawaii