Charles Djou

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Charles Kong Djou is a Republican politician from the State of Hawaii. He currently is serving his second term on the Honolulu City Council, where he represents District 4 (Waikiki to Hawaii Kai). He was first elected to his seat in 2002, and was re-elected in 2006. He previously served one term in the Hawaii House of Representatives from 2000 to 2002, where he served as the Minority Floor Leader. In the City Council, Djou serves as the Chairman of the Executive Matters & Legal Affairs Committee, Vice Chair of the Planning Committee and is a member of the Transportation and Public Safety & Services committees.

Djou grew up in Hawaii. He graduated from Punahou School and earned both a B.A. in Political Science and a B.S. in finance from the University of Pennsylvania, Wharton School of Finance and Commerce, graduating magna cum laude with distinction. He earned his law degree from the University of Southern California Law School.

Djou is married to Stacey Kawasaki Djou and together they have three children. Charles' surname "Djou" is a French translation of his Chinese surname "Zhou."

Outside of the City Council, Djou serves as an officer in the U.S. Army Reserve.^[1] He also teaches as an adjunct professor at the University of Hawaii.

Djou is also an active member of the community. He has previously served on the Board of Directors of the American Lung Association, and was formerly a member of the Kaneohe Neighborhood Board. He is a member of the Young Business Roundtable, the Rotary Club, and the Hawaii Telecommunications Association.

Djou was named legislator of the year by Small Business Hawaii in 2002, 2004, and 2006. In 2006 he was selected as one of the 40 most promising leaders in Hawaii under age 40 by Pacific Business News and in 2005 was named by Honolulu Weekly as the "Best Politician" in the state.

Djou ran as a Republican for the Hawaii State House of Representatives District 47 seat. He was unopposed in the primary election^[2], but lost to Iris Ikeda Catalani in the general election by a margin of 190 votes.^[3]

Djou served as the Vice Chairman of the Hawaii Republican Party from 1998 to 1999.

In 2000, he once again ran for the Hawaii State House of Representatives District 47 seat. Unopposed in the primary, he faced off his incumbent Democrat Iris Ikeda Catalina in the general election. Catalina faced controversy in the campaign, with allegations that she broke a promise to the Outdoor Circle by posting yard signs.^[4] Djou ended up winning the race, gaining 52.5 percent of the vote to Catalani's 44.2 percent.^[5]

As a member of the State House of Representatives, Djou sought to open the State Budget worksheets (which at that time kept secret) to be available to the public after being told he could look at the budget worksheets on in the committee room but was not able to take any notes or make copies of them. The budget worksheets detail the budget for various state departments and agencies. Djou's campaign was successful, and the budget worksheets are now available to the public.

In 2002 the state launched a controversial "van cam" program to catch speeders using automated cameras instead of police officers. Djou opposed this program and successfully campaigned for its removal. The ending of the van cam program led Affiliated Computer Services and Poltech International to seek over $3 million from the state in restitution for the early termination of the 3-year contract.^{[citation needed]}

For the 2002 election, Djou announced he would run for the City Council. He also announced he would move to East Honolulu (City Council District 3) from Kaneohe (City Council District 4) so he could avoid running against fellow Republican Stan Koki.^[6] Honolulu City and County elections are officially non-partisan, so any candidate who wins a majority of the votes in the primary election can win outright. No candidate received a majority of the votes in the primary election^[7], so Djou and opponent Robert Fishman faced each other in a run-off in the general election. Djou took the race with 51.3 percent of the vote, to Fishman's 39.2 percent.^[8]

In the 2006 election season, Djou ran for reelection for his City Council seat. He was unopposed and won the seat by default. Since City Council seats have a two-term limit, Djou is barred from seeking a third term.^[9]

In March 2008, Djou announced he would be running for U.S. Congress, seeking a seat in Hawaii's 1st congressional district^[9]. The seat is currently held by Neil Abercrombie, who has announced he will step down on February 23 in order to run for Governor of Hawaii. Legally, a mail-in special election must take place at least 60 days after a vacancy in the seat.^[10]

• Councilmember Charles Djou, City and County of Honolulu
• Press releases from Councilmember Charles Djou
• Charles Djou for Congress