In a race for a seat in the Hawai’i House of Representatives 22nd district— which includes Waikiki, Ala Moana and Kakaako on the island of Oahu, a 28 year old gay Asian-American and first-time candidate defeated a leader of the Hawai’i chapter of the Proud Boys, a far-right extremist group. Adrian Tam, a son of Chinese immigrants, took 63% of the vote against his opponent Republican Nicholas Ochs, whose campaign Facebook page was deleted by the social media giant for violating terms of its service and community standards, KITV-ABC4 Oahu reported in September. Reacting to his victory, Tam told NBC News reporter Sakshi Venkatraman, “It feels really good to know that someone who is openly LGBT can win. There was a time when people like me could not win. I’m glad that I can bring that representation to the capital.” The newly elected House member told NBC News that it was a tough election campaign, first trying to establish communications with his constituency during the coronavirus pandemic as he ran to defeat longtime incumbent Tom Brower in the August Democratic primary.
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