Rep. Ed Case has won his primary bid to seek another term in the House of Representatives, defeating progressive state Sen. Jarrett Keohokalole in Hawaii's 1st Congressional District.
Case, who served in Congress from 2002 to 2007 and then won again in 2018, faced his toughest primary challenge yet this year. The incumbent had more money in his war chest at the outset of the race, but both candidates raised considerable funds on the campaign trail.
Keohokalole criticized Case for not doing enough to stand up to the Trump administration during its second term, including federal immigration operations. He also attacked Case for being one of four House Democrats to vote for Republicans' initial iteration of the Safeguard American Voter Eligibility (SAVE) Act in April 2025. That version would have imposed a federal voter ID requirement and proof of citizenship mandate for registering to vote.
Case defended his votes, saying he will "never" be someone who votes in lockstep with his party and that the issue of noncitizen voting is not about voter suppression but rather a solution in search of a problem. He later joined nearly all other House Democrats in opposing an updated version of the SAVE Act, which would have expanded federal authority over state voter rolls.
Case now goes on to face Republican Adriel Lam in November in Hawaii's 1st Congressional District, which is considered a safe Democratic seat with a Cook Political Report rating of D+13.
NTC Report coverage is based on reporting from the original publisher.
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