Josh Green (Hawaii politician)

Josh Green was raised in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. He earned bachelor’s degrees in biology and anthropology from Swarthmore College and an M.D. from Penn State, and completed a residency in family medicine.⁠[1]

He then took a National Health Service Corps scholarship and served the underserved Kaʻū community on Hawaiʻi Island. Working as a family physician and emergency room doctor in rural communities, he saw how the high cost of living, the shortage of affordable housing, mental health struggles, and addiction affected local families, experiences that led him to public service.⁠[1]

Green served in the Hawaii State House of Representatives from 2004 to 2008 and in the State Senate from 2008 to 2018, where he was majority floor leader and chaired the Health and Human Services Committee. His legislative work included children’s health insurance, autism coverage known as “Luke’s Law,” creating the Cancer Research Center, raising the tobacco purchase age to 21, and helping establish a statewide trauma care system.⁠[1][2]

In 2018 Green was elected lieutenant governor of Hawaii. In that office he addressed homelessness through kauhale tiny-home villages and the H4 clinic, which combines housing and health care; served as the state’s health care liaison during the COVID-19 pandemic; and led a medical mission to Samoa during a measles outbreak that vaccinated 37,000 people in 48 hours.⁠[1]

In 2022 Green and his running mate, Sylvia Luke, defeated Republicans Duke Aiona and Seaula Jr. Tupai by about 26 points, with Green winning more than 62% of the vote; he took office that December as Hawaii’s ninth governor.⁠[3][2][1]

On affordability, Green’s administration enacted what his office calls the largest income tax cut in state history, worked with the Legislature to double the earned income tax credit and the food tax credit, and exempted medical services reimbursed by Medicare, Medicaid, and TRICARE from the General Excise Tax.⁠[1][4]

On housing and homelessness, his administration streamlined approval rules and expanded the kauhale villages; in health care it created the HELP loan repayment program for physicians and made Hawaii the first state to cover palliative care through Medicaid. In the recovery from the Maui wildfires, the state housed nearly 8,000 displaced survivors and deployed wildfire sensors statewide. He also oversaw the removal of 104 million gallons of fuel from Red Hill and created a Climate Advisory Team.⁠[1]

Since July 1, 2026, Green has chaired the Western Governors’ Association.⁠[3]

In 2026 Green faced no serious opposition in the Democratic primary and ran with Kauaʻi Mayor Derek Kawakami; his general election opponent was the Republican nominee, Gary CorderyGary CorderyGary Cordery is a Hawaii general contractor and the founder of Kingdom Builders. In 2026 he was the Republican nominee for governor of Hawaii and lost the November 3 general election.Open the full entry, with running mate Daniel Anthony. Both candidates named the cost of living as their top issue. Green’s campaign focused on the cost of living, housing, homelessness, and energy costs, and pointed to more than 10,000 low-income housing units approved by his administration; he raised more than $3.7 million.⁠[2][4][3]

On November 3, 2026, the Associated Press declared that Green had defeated Cordery to win a second term. The first printout of results released that night by the state Office of Elections showed the Democratic ticket with about 75% of the vote and the Republican ticket with just over 20%. Green’s 54-point margin was a record for a Hawaii governor’s race, surpassing David Ige’s roughly 29-point margin in 2018.⁠[4][3]

Green has twice been named Physician of the Year by the Hawaiʻi Medical Association and received the American Medical Association’s Outstanding Government Service award. He is married to Jaime Kanani Green.⁠[1]

Office of the Governor of Hawaii: Official website: https://governor.hawaii.gov/ (opens in a new window).⁠[5]

X: Public account: https://x.com/GovJoshGreenMD (opens in a new window).⁠[5]