Political party Republican Name Sam Slom Spouse(s) Divorced Role Political leader | Profession Attorney Party Republican Party Religion Jewish | |
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Born April 13, 1942 (age 82)
Allentown, Pennsylvania ( 1942-04-13 ) Education University of Hawaii at Manoa | ||
Senate minority leader sam slom on rating hawaii business climate
Samuel Morgan "Sam" Slom (born April 13, 1942) is an American politician. Slom was the sole Republican member of the Hawaii Senate from 2010 until his defeat in 2016. Between 1996 and 2016, Slom represented the 9th District, which includes Hawaii Kai, Aina Haina, Kahala and Diamond Head on the island of Oahu. As the sole Republican senator, he was the senate minority leader and floor leader of the Hawaiian Senate. He also served on all 16 Senate committees and on every special committee and subcommittee. He is a native of Allentown, Pennsylvania.
Contents
- Senate minority leader sam slom on rating hawaii business climate
- Senator sam slom s opening day remarks hawaii 2015
- Career
- Education
- Political experience and activities
- Former legislative committees and subcommittees
- References
Senator sam slom s opening day remarks hawaii 2015
Career
Slom formerly served as chief economist for the Bank of Hawaii. Slom is the president and executive director of Smart Business Hawaii, a chamber of commerce that says it is more small business-oriented than the Chamber of Commerce of Hawaii.
In 1996, Slom challenged incumbent Democrat Donna R. Ikeda to represent the 8th district in the Senate of Hawaii. Slom won the election, defeating Ikeda, 12,191 votes to 7,312. The Honolulu Star-Bulletin called the election a "huge election night upset".
Slom was the sole Republican in the 25-member Senate between 2010 and 2017. Slom technically served on all sixteen Senate committees but obviously he could not physically attend all of the meetings. He had to depend on a Democratic colleague to second every motion that he made on the Senate floor (otherwise, the motion dies for lack of a second). Lynn Finnegan, an outgoing Republican member of the Hawaii House of Representatives who ran unsuccessfully for Lieutenant Governor of Hawaii, described Slom's challenge as communicating with Republican constituents across the state who will pressure Democratic lawmakers to consider alternative proposals on some issues.
A second Republican senator, Fred Hemmings, did not seek reelection in 2010 and was replaced by a Democrat. No other U.S. state's legislative body has single-party representation, although the Council of the District of Columbia has only Democrats and independents.
Former Honolulu City Councilman Stanley Chang defeated Slom in the 2016 elections, making the Senate of Hawaii the only legislative chamber with a single party holding all seats. Slom received 47% of the vote.
Education
Slom received an LL.B from La Salle Law School in 1966 and a BA in Government/Economics from the University of Hawaii in 1963.
Political experience and activities
Slom held the following positions in the Hawaii State Senate:
Former legislative committees and subcommittees
Slom was a member of the following committees:
Slom was a member of the following subcommittee: