Greg Guithues for Hawaiʻi
2026 Democratic Primary — Hawaiʻi's 2nd Congressional District
"You are my special interest."
Who I Am
I'm Greg Guithues. I live in Ocean View on the Big Island. I stand against tyranny and will call a fascist a fascist. I'm retired, I draw Social Security, and I'm not scared. Someone has to say something — I'm the one standing here.
District: Hawaiʻi's 2nd Congressional District ("neighbor islands" from Oʻahu's perspective, roughly 50% of the state's population)
Party: Democrat
Home: Ocean View, Big Island (since 2014)
Income: Retired. Social Security, $3,386/mo. House is paid for.
Donations: Humans only. No corporations. No PACs.
📌 WEBMASTER NOTE: 'Read my story.' links to the full biography page.
Why I'm Running
"When my representative told me she was scared, I said, get out of the way. I'm not scared. I can do this. I'm not the only one that can do it, but I'm the one that's standing here now."
I'm running because silence in the face of injustice isn't caution — it's complicity.
In January 2017, a senior Trump White House advisor looked into a camera and described outright falsehoods as "alternative facts." The fact-checkers have been losing ground ever since. Last year a congressman from Texas stood up on the House floor, told the President of the United States "you have no mandate to take health care from poor people," and was removed from the chamber for it — while my own representative stayed seated.
I'm running for the people. The government exists to help the people who need help — not to make the rich richer. I acknowledge my advantage and I want everyone in this great country to have the opportunities I have enjoyed.
It's expensive being poor.
For over a year we'd been out on the highway in Ocean View every Sunday, 11 to noon, protesting growing fascism in America with my neighbors. Signs in hand. I frequently contacted my representative and both senators — email and phone. Nothing back from the senators. From Rep. Tokuda, I got a response.
It wasn't a bad letter. Substantive. She listed her actions. But in the very first sentence she wrote:
"I hear the fear, anger, and urgency in your message, and I share it."
She was scared.
I'm not scared. If you're scared, get out of the way.
If Rep. Tokuda wins the primary, she will have my vote. She's a solid center-left politician. I'll probably be a far-left one. It's a matter of degree. I think I'm more progressive. It's up to you.
I'm not the only person who could do this. But I'm the one standing here now.
📌 WEBMASTER NOTE: Place the Kellyanne Conway 'alternative facts' exchange (Meet the Press, January 22, 2017) as a pull quote or sidebar near this section. Chuck Todd's reply — 'Alternative facts are not facts. They're falsehoods.' — is worth including in full.
📌 WEBMASTER NOTE: Rep. Al Green is currently fighting to stay in Congress himself, due to Republican-led redistricting in Texas. Include a brief acknowledgment near this section.
📌 WEBMASTER NOTE: Rep. Tokuda's full letter (dated February 20, 2026) should be available as an expandable section or attachment near this passage. Direct readers to the opening sentence where the word 'fear' appears. Let voters draw their own conclusions.
The Platform
My platform is built on equality and dignity: the money exists. It has always existed. The question is whether government works for everyone — or only for those who already have everything.
Issue 1: Impeach Trump
We've been wagging signs on the highway Sunday mornings in Ocean View. One of mine reads: "Impeach Him Again." I want to be in that number.
Plan A — The Blue Wave
The 2026 midterms produce a hard Democratic wave. The House flips. First order of business: elect a new Speaker of the House. Then impeach and remove both Trump and Vance. Per the line of presidential succession, the Speaker becomes President. My preferred Speaker: Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez. For years I've said "On the day AOC announces a bid for the presidency, I'll send her money."
📌 WEBMASTER NOTE: Fun fact: the civics class where Greg first learned about presidential succession was the summer school course he took in 1974. Full circle.
Plan B — If the House Stays Red
Republicans pour money into the midterms and retain the House. I will not submit quietly. I will be a disruption. I will make noise. When the Speaker calls for decorum, I'll be the reason he's calling for it. I hope Al Green and 100 others will be standing beside me. The House will be raucous. Rock the house baby — we're not going to let him turn my country into a shithole dictatorship.
Plan B Prime — House Flips, Senate Doesn't
We take the House but not the Senate. Impeachment passes — Trump is impeached again — but removal requires 67 Senate votes, which means Republican senators must cross over. My role: make so much noise on the national stage that Republican senators can't ignore it. The Senate phone system handled 1,600 calls per minute in the early weeks of Trump's second term — compared to a normal rate of 40. Every senator receives a daily report of the most-called-about topics, sorted by ZIP code. I will remind those constituents: keep calling.
📌 WEBMASTER NOTE: Steve Bannon quote for possible use near this section: speaking to conservatives, Bannon warned that if Democrats win the midterms, 'some in this room are going to prison — myself included.' Trump himself told House Republicans at a January 2026 retreat: 'If we don't win the midterms… they'll find a reason to impeach me.' Both men understand what's at stake.
Issue 2: Income Inequality & Tax Reform
Congress sets the tax code. That is not an accident — it is a constitutional responsibility. And for the past four decades, that responsibility has been used to funnel wealth upward.
The top marginal tax rate on the wealthiest Americans was above 90% through the early 1960s. Then came Reagan. The Tax Reform Act of 1986 cut the top rate from 70% to 28%. Trump's 2017 tax bill cut it further to 37% and slashed the corporate rate from 35% to 21%. The middle class has been shrinking ever since. That is not a coincidence. It is a policy choice. I will fight to reverse it.
My job in Washington is to make sure government remembers who actually needs it. Government is here to serve the people, not the donors.
Issue 3: Education Funding Equity
In most of America, the quality of your child's public school is determined by the property tax base of the ZIP code you live in. I know this firsthand. When my children were school-aged in Ohio, we moved from a middle-class neighborhood to one with doctors and lawyers as neighbors — not because our income had dramatically changed, but because we were spending so much on private school to escape an underfunded public system that moving to a higher property-tax district actually made financial sense.
Poor families cannot make that calculation. They are stuck. And their children pay the price.
It's expensive being poor.
Last year my daughter finished her bachelor's degree. In her forties. To my knowledge, the first person in her family tree to earn one. I can't say how proud I am. Education changes lives across generations. Every child in America deserves access to it, regardless of ZIP code.
Issue 4: Universal Healthcare — Medical and Dental
I've recently begun receiving VA health benefits from my ten months of Air Force service. Basic medical care. No bills for basic care and blood work.
We should all have that.
The wealthiest nation in the history of the world has the resources to provide every citizen with medical and dental care. The money doesn't disappear — it gets concentrated at the top. Fix the tax structure, and you fix the funding. It's the same fight.
Issue 5: Environmental Protection
We have one planet. I live on the Big Island of Hawaiʻi — one of the most ecologically precious places on Earth. Federal policy must reflect the reality that no amount of economic growth matters if we destroy the natural systems that sustain all life. Taking everything we can today and leaving nothing for future generations isn't a policy. It's a betrayal.
Issue 6: Native Hawaiian Rights and Dignity
I didn't grow up in Hawaiʻi. I'm not Native Hawaiian. But it's my place as a human being to demand the dignity of a people. The history of Native Hawaiians — and native peoples across our nation — is a history of sovereign nations disrupted by outside forces. Their rights, their cultures, and their sovereignty deserve full respect and active advocacy in Washington. I will provide it.
Goals in Office
I don't come to Washington with a pre-packaged legislative agenda written by lobbyists and consultants. I come with values, a backbone, and a willingness to listen. The people of Hawaiʻi's 2nd District will help shape what we fight for together.
What I can tell you is this: I will stand for the dignity of every human being — and every living thing. I will fight against the extraction mentality that treats this planet and its people as resources to be consumed for short-term profit. I will be loud when loudness is required. I will be present. I will show up.
📌 WEBMASTER NOTE: This section is a placeholder to be expanded as the campaign develops. Specific legislative priorities and co-sponsorship commitments will be added in consultation with constituents and policy advisors.
Core Values
Integrity
"Let me be weighed in an even balance, that God may know mine integrity." — Job 31:6 (KJV)
I don't ask voters to take my word for it. I ask to be weighed — by my record, my actions, and my willingness to show up. In a political climate defined by lies and alternative facts, integrity is the baseline. Everything else follows from it.
Courage
The Bhagavad Gita teaches that walking away from a just confrontation is not peace. It is failure. When Al Green stood up on the House floor and was removed for it, he was not being reckless. He was being righteous. I will not walk away.
Faith
"Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen." — Hebrews 11:1 (KJV)
I'm running for a seat I'm not favored to win, in a race against a comfortable well funded incumbent. I do it anyway. Faith is not the absence of doubt. It is the decision to act in spite of it.
Dignity
For every human being. For every living thing. For every generation that has not yet been born. The measure of a society is how it treats those with the least power — not how it rewards those with the most.
Calls to Action
Vote
Greg Guithues. Hawaiʻi's 2nd Congressional District. Democratic Primary. Ballots go out in late July 2026 and are due August 8, 2026. Choose my name from the list.
Spread the Word
Tell your neighbors. Share the website. Talk to your community. This is a grassroots campaign. That means word of mouth. Tell somebody.
Donate
This is a million-dollar project. I will only accept donations from humans. No corporations. No PACs. Can you spare $10? A different amount?
📌 WEBMASTER NOTE: Place donation policy statement directly adjacent to the donate button. This is non-negotiable and central to the campaign's identity.
[Donation platform/link to be added]
Sign the Petition
I probably already have enough valid signatures to qualify for the ballot. But I'm bringing my clipboard to community gatherings until May when I turn in the paperwork. I will submit all the signatures. I'd like you to be one of them.
📌 WEBMASTER NOTE: Signature deadline: June 2, 2026. Include this deadline prominently with a countdown if possible.
Get in Touch
Contact me through the website.
[Contact form to be added]
Political Hero
Al Green represents Texas on the House floor. He stood up during a Trump address and said: "You have no mandate to take health care from poor people." They removed him from the chamber for it. A few others walked out in solidarity. My own representative did neither.
Al Green is my hero.
📌 WEBMASTER NOTE: Al Green is currently fighting his own battle — Republican redistricting has put his seat at risk. Include a brief note acknowledging his situation on the site near the 'Why I'm Running' section.
Slogans
Primary Campaign Slogan: "You are my special interest."
Use on: yard signs, bumper stickers, website header, social media, donation page.
Personal Tagline: "Every odd fellow has a place in society. This is my kuleana. What's yours?"
Use on: About page, personal introduction, email signature.
Additional Slogans for Use Throughout Site:
- "Decorum be damned." — Why I'm Running section, biography
- "Rock Congress." — Donate/volunteer buttons, rally materials
- "Not afraid to be outrageous." — About page sidebar, social media
- "I will not walk away from a just confrontation." — Values section (from the Bhagavad Gita)
- "I will not compromise my integrity." — Values section, About page
- "It's expensive being poor." — Education and tax policy sections
- "Impeach Him Again." — Issue #1 section
kuleana (n.) — a uniquely Hawaiian value meaning responsibility; a reciprocal relationship between a person and what they are responsible for.
📌 WEBMASTER NOTE: The word 'kuleana' does not need to be defined for a Hawaii audience. Include the definition only on pages or contexts where non-Hawaii visitors may land.
Endorsements
I expect strong community support as my campaign builds momentum. Check back here as endorsements come in.
📌 WEBMASTER NOTE: Build this as a dynamic, easily-updated section. Format: Name, Title/Affiliation, optional one-line quote. Add as endorsements come in between now and the July primary.
[Endorsements to be added]
Key Dates
- Papers Filed: March 5, 2026
- Signature Deadline: June 2, 2026 (25 signatures, $75, notarized)
- Ballots Mailed: Late July 2026
- Primary Election: August 8, 2026
Outstanding Items & Notes for Webmaster
The following items are pending confirmation or delivery from the candidate:
- Papers pulled: confirmed March 5, 2026. Submission deadline: June 2, 2026.
- Campaign email address, phone number, and social media handles
- Photos: highway protest images, community event photos, personal portraits
- Full list of protest signs from Sunday highway demonstrations
- Rep. Tokuda's letter (February 20, 2026) — to be included as attachment/expandable section near 'Why I'm Running'
- Endorsements as received
- Donation platform setup and link
- Contact form setup
- Legislative priorities to be added to Goals in Office as campaign develops
📌 WEBMASTER NOTE: This document is a living draft. Greg will continue to add to it as the campaign develops. All sections marked [PLACEHOLDER] are pending. The webmaster should build the site with easy content update capability, particularly for endorsements, events, and calls to action.
"Every odd fellow has a place in society. This is my kuleana. What's yours?"
Read his story • Take action • Photos
Paid for by Greg Guithues for Hawaii • GregForHawaii.us • "You are my special interest."