ANALYSIS — While hundreds of candidates spend tens of millions of dollars trying to get to Capitol Hill, a handful of lawmakers willingly leave Congress each cycle and run for state or local office.
Inside the Beltway, the move is often portrayed as a demotion, but some of these former members find themselves representing more people in their new roles, along with having more influence and a better quality of life than when they served in Washington.
“Congress is impactful, but the work often feels slow and distant,” said Democrat Kai Kahele, who declined to run for reelection to Hawaii’s 2nd District in 2022 and was elected this summer to the nine-member board of the Office of Hawaiian Affairs, overseeing a nearly billion-dollar trust fund that assists native Hawaiians. Trustees elected him board chair earlier this month.
