HONOLULU (AP) — There may be a serious recession on in Hawaii, but someone has money to give.
Two of the state's best-known Democrats, who may collide over their party's gubernatorial nomination next year, raked in more than $1 million in campaign contributions during the first half of this year.
At the same time, the leading candidate for the Republican nomination collected almost $309,000.
"Political campaigns are in many ways recession-proof," said University of Hawaii political scientist Neal Milner. "People who give to political campaigns find a way to come up with the money, sometimes because they are fairly well off...and sometimes because they just believe in it."
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The two Democrats who now are circling each other are U.S. Rep. Neil Abercrombie, a 10-term incumbent in the House, and Honolulu Mayor Mufi Hannemann, who won a second term last November.
Hannemann has not announced his candidacy for governor but he is exploring a campaign. He collected more than $583,000 since January from more than 240 contributors, including three dozen that gave him $6,000 each, the maximum allowed under state law.
Among the notable contributors were unions representing heavy equipment operators and ironworkers, top aide Kirk Caldwell, former Denver Mayor Wellington Webb, and former University of Hawaii football coach June Jones.
Added to the money that was in his war chest before January, Hannemann's committee boasted almost $1.2 million on hand at the end of June.
Abercrombie has said he definitely will give up his seat and run for governor — though no one can officially file as a candidate until next spring.
The congressman garnered more than $486,000 since January. He had almost $390,000 on hand June 30, as well as $140,500 in debts.
Among his almost 500 donors were Royal Hawaiian Cruises Ltd., political action committees representing optometrists, dentists, pilots and General Dynamics Corp. Some colleagues gave too, such as Reps. Richard Neal of Massachusetts, Eliot Engle of New York and Luis Gutierrez of Illinois.
The state Campaign Spending Commission next month will consider allowing him to transfer some or all the $919,000 in his congressional campaign treasury committee holds into his gubernatorial committee account.
The leading Republican gubernatorial candidate, Lt. Gov. James "Duke" Aiona, collected almost $309,000 in the same period. With his previous balance, Aiona had more than $870,000 in his account at the end of June.
Among his 740 donors were Castle & Cooke Inc. President Edward Roohan; Clay Lacy Aviation; George Pasha IV, president of the shipping company The Pasha Group; and scores of retirees.
Milner said Aiona's total, less than a third of the sum raised by Abercrombie and Hannemann, symbolized the difficulty Republicans have in a Democrat-dominated Hawaii.
His only foe, lawyer John Carroll, raised only about $9,600. He had about $690 on hand on June 30.