Luella Costales
Member of the Hawaii House of Representatives
from the 39th district
In office
March 11, 2022 – November 8, 2022
Preceded byTy Cullen
Succeeded byElijah Pierick
Personal details
BornLos Angeles, California
Political partyDemocratic
EducationUniversity of California San Diego (BA)

Luella Toledo Costales is an American politician who served as a Democratic member of the Hawaiʻi House of Representatives. She was appointed to represent the 39th district after incumbent Representative Ty Cullen resigned in February 2022.[1][2]

Early life and education

Costales was born in Los Angeles and moved to Hawaiʻi in 1992 after her children were born.[3] She graduated from the University of California San Diego with a Bachelor of Arts in Communication/Visual Arts and minors in Literature/Writing and Sociology.[4]

Career

Costales previously served as executive director of the Hawaiʻi Farm Bureau Federation[3] and the Filipino Community Center in Waipahu.[5] She was previously the director of fund development for the Rehabilitation Hospital of the Pacific and currently works as the community and resource manager for the Oahu Economic Development Board.[1]

Costales was appointed to the Honolulu Police Commission in 2012 by Mayor Peter Carlisle.[6] She resigned in 2017 in protest over a lack of gender, ethnic, and work background diversity on a consultant-selected panel reviewing candidates for a new police chief to replace Louis Kealoha.[7]

Hawaiʻi House of Representatives

Governor David Ige appointed Costales to fill the 39th district seat left vacant after incumbent Representative Ty Cullen resigned due to pleading guilty to federal bribery charges.[2] She was sworn in on March 11, 2022.[8] Costales did not run for a full term in the 2022 Hawaiʻi House of Representatives election,[9] and she was succeeded by Republican Elijah Pierick.[10]

Costales had previously run for the 36th district in 2014, losing the Democratic primary to former representative Marilyn Lee who went on to lose to incumbent Republican Beth Fukumoto.[11][12]

Electoral history

2014 Hawaiʻi House of Representatives 36th district Democratic primary results[13]
Party Candidate Votes %
Democratic Marilyn Lee 3,762 64.7
Democratic Luella Costales 1,598 27.5
Independent Over and Under votes 454 7.8
Total votes 5,814 100

References

  1. ^ a b "Ige appoints Costales to replace former lawmaker Cullen". Associated Press. March 9, 2022. Retrieved April 28, 2022.
  2. ^ a b Blair, Chad (March 9, 2022). "Costales Named To Replace Cullen In Hawaii House". Honolulu Civil Beat. Retrieved April 28, 2022.
  3. ^ a b "People who make Hawaii work: Luella Costales". Pacific Business News. February 25, 2010. Retrieved April 28, 2022.
  4. ^ "Candidate Q&A — State House District 36: Luella Costales". Honolulu Civil Beat. August 3, 2014. Retrieved April 28, 2022.
  5. ^ Viotti, Vicky (August 21, 2003). "Aquino's slaying altered psyche of Filipinos". Honolulu Advertiser. ProQuest 414647387. Retrieved May 4, 2022 – via ProQuest.
  6. ^ Pang, Gordon Y.K. (December 8, 2016). "Police Commission picks new chairman". Honolulu Star-Advertiser. Retrieved May 4, 2022.
  7. ^ "Honolulu Police Commissioner Resigns Over Chief Selection Process". Honolulu Civil Beat. Associated Press. September 25, 2017. Retrieved April 28, 2022.
  8. ^ "Representative Luella Costales March 2022 Newsletter" (PDF). March 2022. Retrieved April 28, 2022.
  9. ^ Lovell, Blaze (June 8, 2022). "Nearly 400 Candidates File For Hawaii's Primary Election". Honolulu Civil Beat. Retrieved June 10, 2022.
  10. ^ Gomes, Andrew (November 10, 2022). "Gains in Hawaii Legislature small, but encouraging for Republican party". Honolulu Star-Advertiser. ProQuest 2734610447. Retrieved March 14, 2023.
  11. ^ "Marilyn Lee Seeks Former State House Seat". Honolulu Civil Beat. April 3, 2014. Retrieved April 28, 2022.
  12. ^ Blair, Chad; Hofschneider, Anita (November 4, 2014). "Hawaii Legislature: Most Incumbents Win by Wide Margins". Honolulu Civil Beat. Retrieved May 21, 2022.
  13. ^ "Primary Election 2014 - State of Hawaii – Statewide" (PDF). Hawaii Office of Elections. Retrieved April 28, 2022.

External links

Categories