Ron Kouchi is a Democratic politician and current 14th President of the Hawaiʻi Senate (replacing

Donna Mercado Kim Donna Mercado Kim is an American Democratic party politician from Hawaii. She is a state senator from Senate District 14 and was President of the Hawaiʻi Senate for almost three years. Education Kim attended, and graduated from Farrington Hig ...

who lost her position in an unusual mid-year leadership reorganization).

Personal life

Ron Kouchi is married to Joy Naomi Tanimoto. He has two sons, Dan and Egan.

Career

Kouchi received his high school diploma from Waimea High School and attended

Drake University Drake University is a private university in Des Moines, Iowa. It offers undergraduate and graduate programs, including professional programs in business, law, and pharmacy. Drake's law school is among the 25 oldest in the United States. His ...

in Des Moines,

Iowa Iowa () is a state in the Midwestern region of the United States, bordered by the Mississippi River to the east and the Missouri River and Big Sioux River to the west. It is bordered by six states: Wisconsin to the northeast, Illinois to th ...

. He served as a lobbyist for the County of Kaua‘i at the Hawai‘i State Legislature and is a former member of the Legislative Committee of the Kaua'i Chamber of Commerce. He served for 22 years (11 terms) as a Kaua‘i County Councilman, including 12 years as Council Chair. He is a former director of the Kaua‘i Island Utility Cooperative (2003-2006) and the Kaua‘i Visitors Bureau. He served on the boards of the Kaua‘i Veterans Memorial Hospital and YMCA, and chaired the Wilcox Health Foundation’s capital campaign. He worked as a legislative analyst for the former Rep. Dennis Yamada in 1982, before getting appointed to the Senate (District 7) for the first time in 2010. Kouchi defeated ''John Sydney Yamane'' in the September 18 primary and Republican candidate ''David Hamman'' and Nonpartisan candidate Alfred Darling in the Hawaii State Senate elections 2010. He was elected to the Senate (District 8) in 2012. He has served as the Vice-Chair of the Committee on Agriculture, the Vice Chair of the Committee on Tourism, and the Majority Caucus Leader. He has sponsored 244 bills.Ronald D. Kouchi - Hawaii State Legislature - Open States
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References

External links

Ron Kouchi Official website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Kouchi, Ron 21st-century American politicians Drake University alumni Hawaii politicians of Japanese descent Democratic Party Hawaii state senators Presidents of the Hawaii Senate Kauai County Council members Living people Year of birth missing (living people)