The Hawaiʻi State Senate is the upper chamber of the Hawaiʻi State Legislature. The senate consists of twenty-five members elected from an equal number of constituent districts across the islands. The senate is led by the President of the Senate, elected from the membership of the body, currently Shan Tsutsui. The forerunner of the Hawaiʻi State Senate during the government of the Kingdom of Hawaiʻi was the House of Nobles originated in 1840. In 1894 the Constitution of the Republic of Hawaiʻi renamed the upper house the present senate. Senators are elected to four-year terms and are not subject to term limits. Like most state legislatures in the United States, the Hawaiʻi State Senate is a part-time body and senators often have active careers outside of government. The lower chamber of the legislature is the Hawaiʻi House of Representatives. The membership of the Senate also elects additional officers to include the Senate Vice President, Senate Chief Clerk, Assistant Chief Clerk, Senate Sergeant at Arms and Assistant Sergeant at Arms.

Coordinates: 21°18′41″N 157°47′47″W / 21.31139°N 157.79639°W / 21.31139; -157.79639

Hawaii (ⁱ/həˈwaɪ.iː/ or /həˈwaɪʔiː/; Hawaiian: Hawaiʻi Hawaiian pronunciation: [hɐˈvɐiʔi]) is the most recent of the 50 U.S. states (August 21, 1959), and is the only U.S. state made up entirely of islands. It is the northernmost island group in Polynesia, occupying most of an archipelago in the central Pacific Ocean.

Hawaii’s diverse natural scenery, warm tropical climate, abundance of public beaches and oceanic surrounding, and active volcanoes make it a popular destination for tourists, surfers, biologists, and volcanologists alike. Due to its mid-Pacific location, Hawaii has many North American and Asian influences along with its own vibrant native culture. Hawaii has over a million permanent residents along with many visitors and U.S. military personnel. Its capital is Honolulu on the island of Oʻahu.

The state encompasses nearly the entire volcanic Hawaiian Island chain, which comprises hundreds of islands spread over 1,500 miles (2,400 km). At the southeastern end of the archipelago, the eight "main islands" are (from the northwest to southeast) Niʻihau, Kauaʻi, Oʻahu, Molokaʻi, Lānaʻi, Kahoʻolawe, Maui, and the island of Hawaiʻi. The last is by far the largest and is often called "The Big Island" to avoid confusion with the state as a whole. The archipelago is physiographically and ethnologically part of the Polynesian subregion of Oceania.

Charles Kong Djou (Chinese: 周永康; pinyin: Zhōu Yǒngkāng; born August 9, 1970) is an American politician who served as U.S. Representative for Hawaii's 1st congressional district in 2010. As a member of the Republican Party, Djou won his congressional seat in a special election in May 2010, but was defeated in the general election in November. Djou, who previously served in the Hawaii House of Representatives and the Honolulu City Council, is the first Thai-American and the first Chinese-American Republican to serve in the U.S. House of Representatives.

Born in Los Angeles, California, to a Chinese-American father and a Thai-American mother, Djou grew up in Hawaii. He graduated from the same high school as President Barack Obama, Punahou School, and earned a Bachelor of Arts in political science and a Bachelor of Science in finance from the Wharton School of Finance of the University of Pennsylvania graduating magna cum laude. He earned his law degree at the University of Southern California Law School.

Samuel Morgan Slom, known as Sam Slom (born April 13, 1942), is a Republican member of the Hawaii Senate who since 1996 represented the 8th District, which includes Hawaii Kai, Aina Haina, Kahala and Diamond Head. A native of Allentown, Pennsylvania, Slom is also the president and executive director of Small Business Hawaii.

Slom is the sole Republican in the 25-member Senate since it reconvened after the 2010 elections and therefore minority leader. Slom technically serves on all fifteen Senate committees but cannot physically attend all of the meetings. He must depend on a Democratic colleague to second a motion that he makes on the Senate floor or the motion will die 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, describes Slom's challenge as communicating with Republican constituents across the state who will pressure Democratic lawmakers to consider alternative proposals on some issues.

Neil A. Abercrombie (born June 26, 1938) is an American politician and is the seventh Governor of Hawaii. Previously he was the Democratic U.S. Representative of the First Congressional District of Hawaii, which comprises urban Honolulu. He served in Congress from 1986 to 1987 and from 1991 to 2010, when he resigned to successfully run for governor. He was also a state legislator and member of the Honolulu City Council.

Abercrombie was born in Buffalo, New York, the son of Vera June (née Grader) and George Donald Abercrombie. His ancestry includes English, Irish, and German. Upon graduating from Williamsville High School (now Williamsville South High School), he went on to pursue studies in sociology at Union College in Schenectady, New York. There, Abercrombie obtained his bachelor's degree in 1959. He arrived in Honolulu, Hawaii, a month after statehood in September 1959 to study at the University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa where he earned a master's degree in sociology and later a doctorate in American Studies. There he attended classes with, and befriended, current United States President Barack Obama's parents, Ann Dunham and Barack Obama, Sr.