The mayor of the Hawaii capital, Honolulu, Mufi Hannemann, has confirmed he's running for Governor.
Mr Hannemann, the first person of Samoan ancestry to become Honolulu's mayor, will seek the Democratic nomination in a September primary against former U.S. Congressman, Neil Abercombie.
Mr Hannemann will now resign from the mayoralty, to which he was first elected in 2004.
He says the coming elections are the most important since Hawaii achieved statehood and he says the people need a candidate with the experience to turn the economy around and make improvements that have a lasting impact.
Mr Hannemann says he's committed to addressing the three E's - the economy, education and energy.
That's the Pacific Regional News from Radio New Zealand International
