Blake Ken Oshiro (born January 16, 1970) is an American politician and lawyer. He has served as senior advisor to Governor Josh Green. From 2011 to 2014, he served as deputy chief of staff to Governor Neil Abercrombie. Oshiro previously served as Majority Leader of the Hawaii House of Representatives, where he represented District 33, comprising the Honolulu neighborhoods of Aiea and Halawa. He spent eleven years in the legislature.
Blake Oshiro | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Majority Leader of the Hawaii House of Representatives | |
| In office 2008–2011 | |
| Preceded by | Kirk Caldwell |
| Succeeded by | Pono Chong |
| Member of the Hawaii House of Representatives from the 33rd district | |
| In office January 2001 – December 7, 2011 | |
| Preceded by | Tom Okamura |
| Succeeded by | Tom Okamura |
| Personal details | |
| Born | January 16, 1970 |
| Party | Democratic |
| Profession | Politician, lawyer |
Education
editOshiro graduated from Pearl City High School, the University of Southern California, and the William S. Richardson School of Law at the University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa.[1] In 2011, Oshiro completed Harvard University's John F. Kennedy School of Government program for Senior Executives in State and Local Government as a David Bohnett Foundation LGBTQ Victory Institute Leadership Fellow.
Career
editOshiro was first elected to the House in 2000 and took office the following January. He subsequently won re-election at two-year intervals. Oshiro came out as gay in 2010 during the debate over Hawaii House Bill 444, which granted civil union rights to same-sex couples in Hawaii.[2] He was the main author of the bill.[3] He subsequently faced a socially conservative primary challenger in his 2010 race for reelection, Honolulu City Councilman Gary Okino. Oshiro defeated Okino by 56 percent to 44%.[4] In the general election held on November 2, 2010, Oshiro was reelected over Republican opponent Sam Satoru Kong by a margin of 54.5% to 45.5%.[5]
In November 2011, Oshiro announced that he would resign from the legislature in order to become Neil Abercrombie's deputy chief of staff.[6] His resignation became effective December 7, 2011. Per Hawaii law, Governor Abercrombie had to select Oshiro's successor as state representative from the 33rd district. He chose former state representative and majority leader Tom Okamura, who Oshiro had succeeded in January 2001.[7] Due to poor health, Okamura had to resign just weeks after accepting the appointment. Abercrombie appointed Heather Giugni, a Native Hawaiian filmmaker, to the seat in February 2012.[8] After Abercrombie left office at the end of 2014, Oshiro returned to the private sector as a lawyer with Honolulu law firm Alston Hunt Floyd.[9]
In December 2022, after serving on Governor Josh Green's transition team, Oshiro was appointed as Green's senior advisor.[10][11] He now works for Capitol Consultants of Hawaii, the state's largest lobbying firm.[11][12]
References
edit- ↑ "Blake Oshiro named Deputy Chief of Staff for Abercrombie". Hawaii News Now. November 8, 2011. Retrieved March 30, 2026.
- ↑ "Gay Hawaiian Rep Talks Civil Unions" Archived 2011-06-05 at the Wayback Machine. The Advocate, May 3, 2010.
- ↑ OPI_Admin (September 19, 2010). "Oshiro beats Okino in closely watched Hawaii House race". Honolulu Star-Advertiser. Retrieved March 30, 2026.
- ↑ "Oshiro beats Okino in closely watched Hawaii House race". Honolulu Star-Advertiser. September 18, 2010.
- ↑ "Hawaii Office of Elections: 2010 general election results" (PDF).
- ↑ "Rep. Blake Oshiro named governor's deputy chief of staff". Honolulu Star-Advertiser. November 7, 2011. Retrieved August 3, 2012.
- ↑ "Okamura stepping down from House, cites health reasons". Honolulu Star-Advertiser. February 2, 2012. Retrieved August 3, 2012.
- ↑ "Governor Abercrombie Appoints Heather Giugni to the State House". Hawaii.gov — Office of the Governor. February 16, 2012. Retrieved August 3, 2012.
- ↑ "Blake K. Oshiro, Of Counsel". February 1, 2015. Archived from the original on March 24, 2016. Retrieved February 1, 2016.
- ↑ Dayton, Kevin (December 6, 2022). "Josh Green Takes Over A State With Chronic Problems, But Money To Address Them". Honolulu Civil Beat. Retrieved April 8, 2024.
- 1 2 Lovell, Blaze (November 9, 2022). "Hawaii Governor-Elect Josh Green Is Hiring For New Administration". Honolulu Civil Beat. Retrieved March 30, 2026.
- ↑ Blair, Chad (March 8, 2026). "The Most Influential People At The State Capitol Are Out In The Hallway". Honolulu Civil Beat. Retrieved March 30, 2026.
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