Stunner in the Aloha State: 'Obama's homeboy' Gov. Neil Abercrombie absolutely crushed in Democratic primary

thisistwitchy | 9:27 AM on August 10, 2014

A few weeks ago, Politco reported that President Obama cut radio ads for uber-liberal incumbent Hawaii Gov. Neil Abercrombie:

President Barack Obama is stepping up to help endangered Hawaii Gov. Neil Abercrombie — a longtime family friend — fend off a difficult challenge in next month’s Democratic primary.

In a radio advertisement to begin airing Wednesday, first reported by the Honolulu Star-Advertiser, Obama praises Abercrombie for making “gutsy decisions” on Hawaiians’ behalf, but he leads with a personal appeal on behalf of the governor.

Listen to the radio ad here.

You might think those ads would carry the day in Obama’s very liberal native state, especially since Abercrombie outspent his opponent (state Sen. David Ige) by about 10 to 1. But last night, Ige defeated Abercrombie by a more than 2-1 margin. Via USA Today, Ige appealed to voters unhappy with Abercrombie’s proposal to raise taxes:

Abercrombie, who has spent nearly 40 years in Hawaii politics, is the first Hawaii governor to lose to a primary challenger and only the second not to win re-election. His defeat comes after President Obama last month urged residents of his native state to back Abercrombie, invoking the Hawaiian word for family in a radio ad, saying Abercrombie is “like ohana to me.”

Ige said he offered an alternative for voters who are unhappy with Abercrombie’s proposal last year to raise several taxes and his political style. Ige promised in a campaign flier that “there will be no name-calling when I disagree with anyone, no disparaging remarks toward anyone, no taking sole credit for collective achievements or blaming others when things go wrong.”