Beth Fukumoto
Beth Keiko Fukumoto (formerly Fukumoto Chang, born March 30, 1983) is an American politician who served in the Hawaii House of Representatives from 2013 to 2018, representing District 36.
Beth Fukumoto | |
|---|---|
| Minority Leader of the Hawaii House of Representatives | |
| In office December 31, 2014 – February 1, 2017 | |
| Preceded by | Aaron Ling Johanson |
| Succeeded by | Andria Tupola |
| Member of the Hawaii House of Representatives from the 36th district | |
| In office November 2012 – November 6, 2018 | |
| Preceded by | Redistricted |
| Succeeded by | Val Okimoto |
| Chair of the Hawaii Republican Party | |
Acting | |
| In office September 26, 2011 – November 8, 2011 | |
| Preceded by | Jonah Kaauwai |
| Succeeded by | David S. Chang |
| Personal details | |
| Born | March 30, 1983 Honolulu, Hawaii, U.S. |
| Political party | Democratic (2017–present) |
| Other political affiliations | Republican (Before 2017) Independent (2017) |
| Spouse | David S. Chang (2012–2017) |
| Education | University of Hawaii, Manoa (BA) Georgetown University (MA) |
| Website | Campaign website |
Fukumoto was first elected to the state House of Representatives in 2012 and was the youngest person to serve as the House Minority Leader.
In March 2017, she announced plans to change her party identification from Republican to Democrat citing concerns about racism and sexism. Fukumoto remained an independent until approval of her request to join the Democratic Party on June 19, 2017.
In 2018, Fukumoto ran in the Democratic primary for Hawaii's 1st congressional district in the 2018 elections to replace Colleen Hanabusa, who ran for Governor. The election was won by former Congressman Ed Case.