Gerald Michael Gabbard
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Gerald Michael Gabbard (born January 15, 1948) is an American politician who is the
Hawaii State Senator The Hawaii State Senate ( Hawaiian: Ka ‘Aha Kenekoa) is the upper house of the Hawaii State Legislature. It consists of twenty-five members elected from an equal number of constituent districts across the islands and is led by the President o ...
for District 21 from the Democratic Party, since 2006. Gabbard rose to prominence for efforts to prevent same-sex marriage in Hawaii by passing a 1998 amendment to the
Constitution of Hawaii The Constitution of the State of Hawaii (), also known as the Hawaii State Constitution, is the fundamental governing document of the U.S. state of Hawaii. As an organic text, it establishes the principles and framework of government, enumerate ...
to give the state legislature "the power to reserve marriage to opposite-sex couples" under the 1996 Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA). Gabbard, who was born in
American Samoa American Samoa is an Territories of the United States, unincorporated and unorganized territory of the United States located in the Polynesia region of the Pacific Ocean, South Pacific Ocean. Centered on , it is southeast of the island count ...
, is the first person of Samoan descent to serve in the Hawaii Senate. His daughter,
Tulsi Gabbard Tulsi Gabbard (; born April 12, 1981) is an American politician and military officer serving as the director of National Intelligence, director of national intelligence (DNI) since 2025. She has held the rank of Lieutenant colonel (United Stat ...
, was a Democratic member of the
U.S. House of Representatives The United States House of Representatives is a chamber of the bicameral United States Congress; it is the lower house, with the U.S. Senate being the upper house. Together, the House and Senate have the authority under Article One of th ...
for Hawaii's second congressional district from 2013 to 2021 and was a candidate for the Democratic presidential nomination in 2020. She later switched parties and became the Director of National Intelligence during President
Donald Trump Donald John Trump (born June 14, 1946) is an American politician, media personality, and businessman who is the 47th president of the United States. A member of the Republican Party (United States), Republican Party, he served as the 45 ...
’s second term in 2025.


Early life and education

Gabbard was born on January 15, 1948, in
Fagatogo, American Samoa Fagatogo () is the downtown area of Pago Pago (the territorial capital of American Samoa).Grabowski, John F. (1992). ''U.S. Territories and Possessions (State Report Series)''. Chelsea House Pub. Page 51. . Located in the low grounds at the foot o ...
, one of eight children of Aknesis Agnes (Yandall) and Benjamin Harrison Gabbard, Jr. Mike Gabbard is of Samoan and European descent from both his maternal and paternal ancestry. He was a U.S. citizen from birth because of his father's U.S. citizenship. Gabbard lived in Hawaii as a child and graduated from
Choctawhatchee High School Choctawhatchee High School is a high school in Fort Walton Beach, Florida. It is the only school in Okaloosa County to offer the International Baccalaureate Diploma Programme. It also offers the Advanced Placement Program and honors classes, AF ...
in
Fort Walton Beach, Florida Fort Walton Beach, often referred to by the initialism FWB, is a city in southern Okaloosa County, Florida, United States. As of the 2020 United States census, 2020 U.S. census, the population was 20,922, up from 19,507 in 2010. It is a principa ...
. He studied at and obtained a degree in English from
Sonoma State College Sonoma State University (SSU, Sonoma State, or Sonoma) is a public university in Sonoma County, California, United States. It is part of the California State University system. Sonoma State offers 92 bachelor's degree programs, 19 master's de ...
in 1971. He earned a
master's degree A master's degree (from Latin ) is a postgraduate academic degree awarded by universities or colleges upon completion of a course of study demonstrating mastery or a high-order overview of a specific field of study or area of professional prac ...
in community college administration from
Oregon State University Oregon State University (OSU) is a Public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in Corvallis, Oregon, United States. OSU offers more than 200 undergraduate degree programs and a variety of graduate and doctor ...
.


Early career

In the 1970s and early 1980s, Gabbard taught high school English in American Samoa and was a guidance counselor and later Assistant Dean of Instruction, and Dean of Adult and Community Education at
American Samoa Community College American Samoa Community College (ASCC) is a public land-grant community college in the village of Mapusaga, American Samoa. Only legal residents of American Samoa who have graduated from high school or obtained a General Equivalency Diploma ar ...
. He also worked as a head tennis pro at the Kuilima Hyatt Resort on the North Shore of
O'ahu Oahu (, , sometimes written Oahu) is the third-largest and most populated island of the Hawaiian Islands and of the U.S. state of Hawaii. The state capital, Honolulu, is on Oahu's southeast coast. The island of Oahu and the uninhabited Northwe ...
in the mid 1970s. From 1983 to 1987, Gabbard and his wife Carol established the Ponomauloa School in
Wahiawa, Hawaii Wahiawā () is a census-designated place (CDP) in Honolulu County, Hawaii, Honolulu County, Hawaii, United States, on the island of Oahu. It is in the Wahiawā District, on the plateau or "central valley" between the two volcanic mountains that ...
, where he worked as headmaster and teacher; it closed after five years. From 1988 to 1992, Gabbard and his wife owned The Natural Deli, a
vegetarian restaurant This is an incomplete list of vegetarian and vegan restaurants. Vegetarian cuisine refers to food that meets vegetarian standards by not including meat and animal tissue products. For lacto-ovo vegetarianism (the most common type of vegetarian ...
within Moiliili, Hawaii's Down to Earth Natural Food Store. Gabbard closed the restaurant following picketing by activists after Gabbard said on his self-funded radio show, "Let's Talk Straight Hawaii", on K-108, that "If wo applicantswere both the same, then I would take the one that is not homosexual." In the late 1980s and early 1990s, Gabbard and his wife worked for
state Senator A state senator is a member of a State legislature (United States), state's senate in the bicameral legislature of 49 U.S. states, or a member of the unicameral Nebraska Legislature. History There are typically fewer state senators than there ...
Rick Reed. In the early 1990s, Gabbard and his wife were listed as teachers for the
Science of Identity Foundation The Science of Identity Foundation (SIF) is a new religious movement started in the 1970s. It was founded by Chris Butler after he broke from the International Society for Krishna Consciousness. It is based in the US state of Hawaii. Its theolo ...
. Gabbard and his wife later started Hawaiian Toffee Treasures, a candy company in Honolulu.


Political career

Gabbard was elected to the
Honolulu City Council Honolulu City Council is the legislature of the City and County of Honolulu, the capital and largest city in Hawai'i, the fiftieth state in the United States. The City and County of Honolulu is a municipal corporation that manages government a ...
in a nonpartisan race in 2002. In 2004, he ran unsuccessfully as a Republican for the
Second Congressional District of Hawaii The U.S. state of Hawaii is divided into two congressional districts for representation in the United States House of Representatives. Before statehood, the Territory of Hawaii was represented by a non-voting delegate. From statehood until 1963, ...
in the
United States House of Representatives The United States House of Representatives is a chamber of the Bicameralism, bicameral United States Congress; it is the lower house, with the U.S. Senate being the upper house. Together, the House and Senate have the authority under Artic ...
, losing to
state Representative A state legislature is a legislative branch or body of a political subdivision in a federal system. Two federations literally use the term "state legislature": * The legislative branches of each of the fifty state governments of the United St ...
Ed Case Edward Espenett Case (born September 27, 1952) is an American lawyer and politician. A member of the Democratic Party, he has served as the U.S. representative for Hawaii's 1st congressional district since 2019, which covers the urban core o ...
. On March 21, 2006, Gabbard announced his plans to run for the
Hawaii State Senate The Hawaii State Senate ( Hawaiian: Ka ‘Aha Kenekoa) is the upper house of the Hawaii State Legislature. It consists of twenty-five members elected from an equal number of constituent districts across the islands and is led by the President o ...
in West Oahu's District 19, after 14-year incumbent Senator Brian Kanno decided not to run for reelection. On November 7, 2006, Gabbard defeated retired Honolulu police captain George Yamamoto by a 56% to 44% margin, to represent the district in the
Hawaii State Senate The Hawaii State Senate ( Hawaiian: Ka ‘Aha Kenekoa) is the upper house of the Hawaii State Legislature. It consists of twenty-five members elected from an equal number of constituent districts across the islands and is led by the President o ...
. Gabbard was sworn in on January 17, 2007. Gabbard, who was born in
American Samoa American Samoa is an Territories of the United States, unincorporated and unorganized territory of the United States located in the Polynesia region of the Pacific Ocean, South Pacific Ocean. Centered on , it is southeast of the island count ...
, became the first person of Samoan descent to serve in the Hawaii Senate. On August 30, 2007, Gabbard switched from the
Republican Party of Hawaii The Hawaii Republican Party (HRP; ) is the affiliate of the Republican Party (GOP) in Hawaii, headquartered in Honolulu. The party was strong during Hawaii's territorial days, but following the Hawaii Democratic Revolution of 1954 the Democrati ...
to the
Democratic Party of Hawaii The Democratic Party of Hawaii (DPH; ) is the affiliate of the Democratic Party in the state of Hawaii. It is currently the dominant party in the state, and is one of the strongest affiliates of the national Democratic Party. The party curren ...
. His stated reason for doing so was that he believed that he could be more effective to his constituents as part of the majority party in the State Senate, where Democrats have long had a
supermajority A supermajority is a requirement for a proposal to gain a specified level of support which is greater than the threshold of one-half used for a simple majority. Supermajority rules in a democracy can help to prevent a majority from eroding fun ...
. On November 2, 2010, Gabbard was re-elected for a second term to the Hawaii State Senate, after defeating Republican Aaron Bonar by a 74% to 26% margin. Gabbard served as the Chair of the Energy and Environment Committee from 2009 to 2015, which culminated with his leadership on the passage of a first-in-the-nation law to require Hawaii utilities to get 100% of their electricity from clean, renewable energy sources by 2045. On November 6, 2012, Gabbard defeated Republican candidate Dean Capelouto, 72% to 28%, to represent the newly reapportioned Hawaii State Senate District 20. During the 2016 election cycle, Gabbard was unopposed, and was re-elected to the Hawaii State Senate for a four-year term on November 8, 2016.


Activism

Gabbard became an anti-homosexual activist before the same-sex marriage debate took hold in Hawaii. Between 1991 and 1996, Gabbard founded the organizations Stop Promoting Homosexuality Hawaii (renamed Stop Promoting Homosexuality International), Stop Promoting Homosexuality America, and the Alliance for Traditional Marriage and Values. Gabbard became well known for his advocacy for
Hawaii Constitutional Amendment 2 (1998) Constitutional Amendment 2 of 1998 amended the Constitution of Hawaii, granting the state legislature the power to prevent same-sex marriage from being conducted or recognized in Hawaii. Amendment 2 was the first constitutional amendment adopt ...
. This amendment, approved by voters 69.2%–28.6%, gave the state legislature "the power to reserve marriage to opposite-sex couples" under the federal Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA), signed by
Bill Clinton William Jefferson Clinton (né Blythe III; born August 19, 1946) is an American politician and lawyer who was the 42nd president of the United States from 1993 to 2001. A member of the Democratic Party (United States), Democratic Party, ...
in 1996. Shortly after
9/11 The September 11 attacks, also known as 9/11, were four coordinated Islamist terrorist suicide attacks by al-Qaeda against the United States in 2001. Nineteen terrorists hijacked four commercial airliners, crashing the first two into ...
, Gabbard founded Stand Up For America (SUFA), a non-profit educational organization. In 2007, Gabbard co-founded the non-profit Aloha Parenting Project (APP) with his wife Carol.


Political positions


Same-sex marriage

Gabbard used to oppose
same-sex marriage Same-sex marriage, also known as gay marriage, is the marriage of two people of the same legal Legal sex and gender, sex. marriage between same-sex couples is legally performed and recognized in 38 countries, with a total population of 1.5 ...
and civil unions. He used to believe that marriage should only be between a man and a woman. However, in March 2024 he voted to put Amendment 1 on the ballot and expressed support for same-sex marriage. Gabbard apologized for his previous opposition to same-sex marriage and stated that conversations with his daughter
Tulsi ''Ocimum tenuiflorum'', commonly known as holy basil, ''tulasi'' or ''tulsi'' (), is an aromatic perennial plant in the family Lamiaceae. It is widely cultivated throughout the Southeast Asian tropics. It is native to tropical and subtropical r ...
led to him evolving on this issue.


Environment

In 2016, while serving as the Chair of the Water, Land, and Agriculture Committee, Gabbard authored a bill banning the sale of parts and products of
endangered species An endangered species is a species that is very likely to become extinct in the near future, either worldwide or in a particular political jurisdiction. Endangered species may be at risk due to factors such as habitat loss, poaching, inv ...
. In 2018, Gabbard authored legislation that enacted a statewide ban on sunscreens that contained the controversial chemicals
oxybenzone Oxybenzone or benzophenone-3 or BP-3 (trade names Milestab 9, Eusolex 4360, Escalol 567, KAHSCREEN BZ-3) is an organic compound belonging to the class of aromatic ketones known as benzophenones. It takes the form of pale-yellow crystals that are ...
and
octinoxate Octyl methoxycinnamate or ethylhexyl methoxycinnamate (INCI) or octinoxate (United States Adopted Name, USAN), trade names Eusolex 2292 and Uvinul MC80, is an organic compound that is an ingredient in some sunscreens and lip balms. It is an este ...
. The bill also included a ban on the pesticide
chlorpyrifos Chlorpyrifos (CPS), also known as chlorpyrifos ethyl, is an organophosphate pesticide that has been used on crops, animals, in buildings, and in other settings, to kill several pests, including insects and worms. It acts on the nervous systems ...
, and upon enactment, Hawaii became the first state to ban the substance. In 2021, Gabbard reintroduced the Hawaii Cruelty Free Cosmetics Act, which passed the
Hawaii State Legislature The Hawaii State Legislature ( Hawaiian: Ka ‘Aha‘ōlelo kau kānāwai o ka Moku‘āina o Hawai‘i) is the bicameral state legislature of the U.S. state of Hawaii, consisting of the Hawaii State Senate (upper house with 25 senators) and t ...
and would make Hawaii the sixth state to ban cosmetic
animal testing Animal testing, also known as animal experimentation, animal research, and ''in vivo'' testing, is the use of animals, as model organisms, in experiments that seek answers to scientific and medical questions. This approach can be contrasted ...
, after having previously introduced the bill in 2018. He received
Cruelty Free International Cruelty Free International is a British animal rights and advocacy group that campaigns for the abolition of all animal testing. It organises certification of cruelty-free products which are marked with the symbol of a leaping bunny. It was fo ...
's May 2021 award for Legislator of the Month. He also introduced and passed SCR44, a resolution which made Hawaii the first state to declare a " climate emergency". He is currently the Chair of the Agriculture and Environment Committee.


Personal life

Mike Gabbard married Carol Porter in 1968. One of Mike's daughters,
Tulsi ''Ocimum tenuiflorum'', commonly known as holy basil, ''tulasi'' or ''tulsi'' (), is an aromatic perennial plant in the family Lamiaceae. It is widely cultivated throughout the Southeast Asian tropics. It is native to tropical and subtropical r ...
, became a politician. Mike's sister, Caroline Sinavaiana-Gabbard, was a professor who died in a stabbing in May 2024. A socially conservative
Catholic The Catholic Church (), also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the List of Christian denominations by number of members, largest Christian church, with 1.27 to 1.41 billion baptized Catholics Catholic Church by country, worldwid ...
, Gabbard serves as a
lector Lector is Latin for one who reads, whether aloud or not. In modern languages it takes various forms, as either a development or a loan, such as , , and . It has various specialized uses. Academic The title ''lector'' may be applied to lecturers ...
at St. Jude Catholic Church in
Makakilo, Hawaii Makakilo () or Makakilo City is a census-designated place and residential area located in the Ewa District on the island of Oahu in the City & County of Honolulu, United States. In Hawaiian, ''maka kilo'' means "observing eyes". As of the 2 ...
. In the 1970s, Gabbard and his wife became devotees of Chris Butler, who founded the
Science of Identity Foundation The Science of Identity Foundation (SIF) is a new religious movement started in the 1970s. It was founded by Chris Butler after he broke from the International Society for Krishna Consciousness. It is based in the US state of Hawaii. Its theolo ...
. Gabbard became
vegetarian Vegetarianism is the practice of abstaining from the Eating, consumption of meat (red meat, poultry, seafood, insects as food, insects, and the flesh of any other animal). It may also include abstaining from eating all by-products of animal slau ...
and gave his children
Hindu Hindus (; ; also known as Sanātanīs) are people who religiously adhere to Hinduism, also known by its endonym Sanātana Dharma. Jeffery D. Long (2007), A Vision for Hinduism, IB Tauris, , pp. 35–37 Historically, the term has also be ...
names.


Notes


References


External links

* * * , - , - {{DEFAULTSORT:Gabbard, Mike 1948 births Living people 20th-century Roman Catholics 21st-century Roman Catholics American anti-same-sex-marriage activists American people of Samoan descent American politicians who switched parties American Roman Catholics American Samoan politicians Catholics from Hawaii Choctawhatchee High School alumni Democratic Party Hawaii state senators 21st-century members of the Hawaii State Legislature Hawaii Democrats Hawaii independents Hawaii Republicans Honolulu City Council members Oregon State University alumni Republican Party Hawaii state senators Schoolteachers from Hawaii