Rep. Thielen Will Not Seek Re-Election To State House
鈥淚 am deeply grateful for the 30 years of support from my district,鈥 says the longtime representative.
Hawaii State Rep. Cynthia Thielen Tuesday that she will not run for re-election in 2020.
“I am deeply grateful for the 30 years of support from my District,” she wrote. “After this long term of service, though, it鈥檚 time to move on.”
Thielen, a moderate Republican Kailua and Kaneohe Bay since 1990, is perhaps best known for her advocacy of industrial hemp.
But she has also been an outspoken leader on environmental and women’s issue and renewable energy, to name just three broad categories of interest.
Thielen, mother of state Sen. Laura Thielen, a Democrat, also has a record of working with Democrats. She is expected to formally announce her retirement from the House on Wednesday.
Cynthia Thielen often spoke of her admiration for Teddy Roosevelt, a Republican president known for his strong advocacy of the environment.
President Dwight Eisenhower was also a hero, admired for his strong leadership that earned him respect from both sides of the aisle 鈥 a quality that has faded in recent years as partisanship has dominated the political scene.
It is a scene where Thielen’s absence will be notable. But she said it was time to say “mahalo and aloha.”
“While I鈥檓 still fiercely advocating for our District at my strategic and mental peaks, and thankfully have a clean bill of health, I believe our District needs someone who will be 100% actively meeting with and representing them 24/7 for years to come,” she wrote on her blog. “At age 86, that is something I no longer feel able to do.”
