Josh Green
- Lieutenant Governor: 2018-2022
- Senate: 2008-2018
- House: 2004-2008
Bio
An emergency room doctor in civilian life, Josh Green has held elected office in Hawaii since 2004 when he won a Big Island House seat. Four years later, he jumped to the Senate where he served for 10 years. In 2018, Green beat out five other well-known candidates to win the Democratic primary for lieutenant governor and went on, along with Gov. David Ige, to win the November election that year. In 2022, running for governor, Green had a tough primary race against two other Democrats but won by a wide margin and easily defeated a Republican challenger in the November general. The 56-year-old governor is running for reelection in 2026.
Green was raised in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, and makes no secret of his love for the Pittsburgh Steelers. He earned degrees in biology and anthropology from Swarthmore College and got his medical degree at Penn State. He moved to Hawaiʻi island as part of the National Health Service Corps. He’s made health care a priority as an elected official, championing health insurance, cancer research and establishing a statewide trauma system, among other things.
During the coronavirus pandemic in 2020 and 2021, Green, as lieutenant governor, played a key role as the administration’s health care liaison to the Legislature. He was an outspoken advocate for public safety restrictions, including social distancing, mask-wearing and strict travel protocols, and famously became a critic of the Ige administration for its slow response to the Covid-19 outbreak in Hawaiʻi. More recently, as governor he has lobbied against Robert F. Kennedy Jr. as the U.S. Secretary of Health. He’s floated the idea of running for president someday. His wife, Jaime Kanani Green, is an attorney. The couple has two children.
Job Description
In Hawaii, the governor is the chief executive and is responsible for the executive branch of state government. Among other things, according to the Legislative Research Bureau, the governor directs the development of the executive budget and the generation of recommendations for revenue producing measures and programs, which are submitted to the Legislature for each fiscal biennium. The governor’s authority includes the power to call the Legislature into special session, to veto legislation passed by the Legislature, to grant reprieves and pardons, and to arrange interstate compacts. The governor is also the commander in chief of the armed forces of the State. The governor nominates and, with the advice and consent of the Senate, appoints members of boards and commissions and members of the Cabinet and fills vacancies in the House of Representatives and the Senate as well as vacancies in the courts.
Influence
There are three categories of donations to legislators after they are elected that encourage a working relationship between the donor and the legislator. The three categories are: 1-Gifts, 2-Travel, 3-Behests.
|
Giver
|
Value
|
Date
|
Description
|
|---|---|---|---|
| Hawaii Executive Collaborative | $1,088 | Sep 27, 2023 | Hotel and registration for Hawaii Executive Collaborative Conference |
Gifts
For gifts that are allowed, officials must file an annual gifts disclosure statement with the Hawai'i State Ethics Commission if they or their spouse or dependent child receive from a single source one or multiple gifts and the whole aggregate value exceeds $200.
|
Giver
|
Value
|
Date
|
Description
|
|---|---|---|---|
| HomeAide Hawaiʻi | $200 | Apr 30, 2024 | Oʻo Stick |
Gifts
For gifts that are allowed, officials must file an annual gifts disclosure statement with the Hawai'i State Ethics Commission if they or their spouse or dependent child receive from a single source one or multiple gifts and the whole aggregate value exceeds $200.
|
Giver
|
Value
|
Date
|
Description
|
|---|---|---|---|
| Bowery Residents Committee (BRC) | $1,400 | Jun 15, 2017 | BRC 2017 Fall Symposium |
Sponsored Travel
Officials are allowed to have their expenses paid for domestic and international travel that is related to their work including, for example, trips to conferences or to tour places facing issues similar to Hawai'i. There is no limit on the amount of travel expenses a official can accept. The trips are often funded by companies or organizations with interest in state policy.
|
Giver
|
Value
|
Date
|
Description
|
|---|---|---|---|
| Fiji Airways | $1,446.6 | Dec 6, 2019 | Flight from Apia, Samoa to Honolulu, Hawaii. |
| Fiji Aireays | $1,446.6 | Dec 6, 2019 | Flight from Apia, Samoa to Honolulu, Hawaii. |
| Hawaiian Airlines | $520 | Dec 4, 2019 | Flight from Honolulu to Apia, Samoa |
Sponsored Travel
Officials are allowed to have their expenses paid for domestic and international travel that is related to their work including, for example, trips to conferences or to tour places facing issues similar to Hawai'i. There is no limit on the amount of travel expenses a official can accept. The trips are often funded by companies or organizations with interest in state policy.
|
Giver
|
Value
|
Date
|
Description
|
|---|---|---|---|
| Neurovations Education | $930 | Mar 5, 2020 | Plane ticket and hotel stay for 3 nights. |
Sponsored Travel
Officials are allowed to have their expenses paid for domestic and international travel that is related to their work including, for example, trips to conferences or to tour places facing issues similar to Hawai'i. There is no limit on the amount of travel expenses a official can accept. The trips are often funded by companies or organizations with interest in state policy.
|
Giver
|
Value
|
Date
|
Description
|
|---|---|---|---|
| Western Governors Association | $1,000 | Jun 24, 2023 | Hotel stay for Western Governors Association Annual Meeting |
| National Governors Association | $458 | Jul 12, 2023 | Hotel stay for National Governors Association Summer Meeting |
Sponsored Travel
Officials are allowed to have their expenses paid for domestic and international travel that is related to their work including, for example, trips to conferences or to tour places facing issues similar to Hawai'i. There is no limit on the amount of travel expenses a official can accept. The trips are often funded by companies or organizations with interest in state policy.
|
Giver
|
Value
|
Date
|
Description
|
|---|---|---|---|
| National Governors Association | $1,436 | Feb 21, 2024 | Hotel stay for National Governors Association Winter Meeting |
| Forbes | $675 | Feb 27, 2024 | Hotel stay for Forbes Travel Guide Symposium Awards |
Sponsored Travel
Officials are allowed to have their expenses paid for domestic and international travel that is related to their work including, for example, trips to conferences or to tour places facing issues similar to Hawai'i. There is no limit on the amount of travel expenses a official can accept. The trips are often funded by companies or organizations with interest in state policy.
Previous Election (2022):