Charles Djou

Charles Kong Djou (born August 9, 1970) is an American politician who served as U.S. representative for Hawaii's 1st congressional district from 2010 to 2011. Djou won his House seat in a May 2010 special election. He was defeated in the November general election after the Democratic primary provided a single opponent. He ran for but did not win his old House seat again in 2012 and 2014. Djou, who previously served in the Hawaii House of Representatives and on the Honolulu City Council, was the first Thai American of any party and the first Chinese American Republican to serve in the U.S. House of Representatives. In June 2016, he entered the race for mayor of Honolulu, which he lost, 48% to 52%, to incumbent Kirk Caldwell. As of 2023, Djou was the last Republican to have represented Hawaii in Congress. He left the Republican Party in 2018 and in 2020 endorsed Joe Biden for president. After Biden won the presidency, he appointed Djou to be Secretary of the American Battle Monuments Commission.