Ho Yin Wong

This page was current at the end of the individual's last campaign covered by Ballotpedia. Please contact us with any updates.

Ho Yin Wong

Nonpartisan

Elections and appointments

Last election

August 8, 2020

Education

Bachelor's

Simon Fraser University, 2000

Graduate

Heriot-Watt University, 2001

Personal

Profession

Chief governance and information officer

Contact

Campaign website

Campaign Facebook

Campaign Instagram

Ho Yin Wong (also known as Jason) ran for election for Mayor of Honolulu in Hawaii. He lost in the primary on August 8, 2020.

Wong completed Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection survey in 2020. Click here to read the survey answers.

Biography

Ho Yin Wong was born in Hong Kong. He earned a bachelor’s degree from Simon Fraser University in 2000 and a master’s degree from Heriot-Watt University in 2001. Wong’s career experience includes working as the chief governance and information officer of a cloud technology company.

Elections

2020

See also: Mayoral election in Honolulu, Hawaii (2020)

General election

General election for Mayor of Honolulu

Rick Blangiardi defeated Keith Amemiya in the general election for Mayor of Honolulu on November 3, 2020.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔		Rick Blangiardi (Nonpartisan)	60.0	224,474
		Keith Amemiya (Nonpartisan)	40.0	149,735

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	There were no incumbents in this race. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 374,209
= candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
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Nonpartisan primary election

Nonpartisan primary for Mayor of Honolulu

The following candidates ran in the primary for Mayor of Honolulu on August 8, 2020.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔		Rick Blangiardi (Nonpartisan)	25.6	69,661
✔		Keith Amemiya (Nonpartisan)	20.2	55,116
		Colleen Hanabusa (Nonpartisan)	18.4	50,234
		Kymberly Marcos Pine (Nonpartisan)	14.7	40,104
		Mufi Hannemann (Nonpartisan)	9.9	27,027
	Submit photo	William Stonebraker (Nonpartisan)	6.5	17,757
		Choon James (Nonpartisan)	2.0	5,538
		John Carroll (Nonpartisan)	0.7	2,011
	Submit photo	Ho Yin Wong (Nonpartisan)	0.5	1,437
	Submit photo	Ernest Caravalho (Nonpartisan)	0.4	1,140
	Submit photo	Audrey Keesing (Nonpartisan)	0.3	823
	Submit photo	Micah Mussell (Nonpartisan)	0.2	541
	Submit photo	David Bourgoin (Nonpartisan)	0.1	368
		Karl Dicks (Nonpartisan)	0.1	361
	Submit photo	Tim Garry (Nonpartisan)	0.1	313

---

	There were no incumbents in this race. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 272,431
= candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey.
Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team.

Campaign themes

2020

Video for Ballotpedia

Video submitted to Ballotpedia Released July 9, 2020

Ballotpedia survey responses

See also: Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection

Ho Yin Wong completed Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection survey in 2020. The survey questions appear in bold and are followed by Wong's responses.

Expand all | Collapse all

Who are you? Tell us about yourself.

Ho Yin (Jason) Wong is running for Honolulu Mayor. Jason served as the Chief Governance & Information Officer for a cloud technology company. He has many years of corporate governance, compliance, audit, interdepartmental collaboration, root cause analysis, corrective and preventive actions experience. As most of these processes have been conspicuously missing in our current city administration, Jason believes that he brings a highly relevant skill set to the job. Jason is an independent candidate who does not accept any union, special interest group nor lobbyist's endorsement or financial support. Jason strongly believes in government of "by the people, for the people" and will not let special interests disrupt that. Furthermore, Jason has a BA degree in Economics and MBA degree in Negotiation & Human Resource Management, and he strongly believes in an open economy with positive effect of (smartly) lowering taxes, de-centralizing government administration through outsourcing jobs to local, good-standing small business operators. In short, Jason is an Economist by heart and he is a local small business operator advocate who aims to bring back the Golden Age of Oahu where happiness and prosperity can be shared among all residents of Honolulu.

Please list below 3 key messages of your campaign. What are the main points you want voters to remember about your goals for your time in office?

• I have no political baggage. I am not for sale. I am an independent candidate with Economics degree, who does not accept any union or special interest group's endorsement or money.
• Pursuit of Happiness: To restore the Golden Age of Oahu where happiness and prosperity can be found in every Honolulu household by lowering cost of living and diversifying our economy by attracting other industries to come to Oahu.
• Moving Beyond Tourism...Honolulu 2.0: Re-Inventing Oahu to be The New Global IT & Film Hub.

What areas of public policy are you personally passionate about?

For the long-term, we absolutely need to diversify our economy from the current over-reliance on tourism. My plan is to do all that we can, at the city and county level, to grow the high-wage, high-growth and pandemic-resistant IT sector in Honolulu, including investing in IT education for our kama'aiana, alongside encouraging more film and TV production here, which again creates more high-paying jobs.

The point behind the Honolulu 2.0 plan is to give our residents more stable, better paying, career options - moving beyond tourism, raising our per-capita GDP. It's the Economist in me - my formal education, and my MBA - speaking.

Why I.T.? IT holds the keys to the future: it is the sector with the highest sustained rate of growth, that will only further accelerate and continue to eclipse other parts of the economy. Jobs in IT are recession and pandemic proof, and can be done from anywhere in the world, and are some of the better paying jobs anywhere. Our multicultural, multilingual, sharp and capable population, coupled with a highly advantageous time zone and geographic location, make Honolulu a natural IT hub - something so obvious that our politicians of yesterday have failed to see. With some help from the city government, such as incentives for IT businesses and new and existing education institutions, we can finally move Honolulu into the 21st century, and be ready for - and part of - the future.

Detailed Honolulu 2.0 policy whitepaper: 2020jasonwong.com

Who do you look up to? Whose example would you like to follow, and why?

Singapore and Hong Kong do not have natural resources, yet they are the major players in global finance & trading hubs of the world. Tourism, real estate, construction business may contribute part of positive GDP growth, yet without trading activities, there would be no Singapore or Hong Kong. I believe Honolulu has all the right attributes to be the trading and transport gateway between North America and Asia. Under my leadership, the Port of Honolulu will be upgraded to be a world class transport interchange hub between Asia and North America; first, of course, establishing a strategic trading and business partnerships with our neighbors.

Next, goods and services will be introduced to trading partners via Honolulu as the perfectly located intermediary. Instead of being constantly bypassed, Honolulu will be a part of the equation.

Trade shows and conventions will be hosted in Honolulu to educate attendees about new products, services and innovations from Asia and North America.

Additionally, under my Honolulu 2.0 framework, I will actively work to grow our city into a new global IT and film hub. That will create more well-paid, recession and pandemic-proof jobs, it will also stimulate demand for new construction.

My goal is simple economics: improving general population's financial position which will create more demand for new construction. The way to achieve that is to move our population as a whole more upstream and beyond just the tourism service jobs.

Our Oahu construction business operators will play an active part in this new integration of business and trade connections due to more IT companies forming operations here, more demand for expanding our existing education's infrastructure, and let's not forget, the growth of the film industry. There is no doubt about, there will be new joint-ventures where foreign and local business operators will develop new technology and new industry on Oahu.

To learn more: 2020jasonwong.com

What characteristics or principles are most important for an elected official?

Honolulu Mayor should be free from any union, special interest group, lobbyist nor past/present politicians' influence. In other words, one should be impartial and neutral in any decision making. Unlike others, I am an independent candidate who does not accept any union or special interest group's endorsement or money. The bottom line is, I have no political baggage. I am not for sale.
My administration will follow the principle of "by the people, for the people" and will not let special interests disrupt that. Our residents work hard for their money, and deserve better than recycled politicians and empty promises. And we don't have the luxury of time for "change" or to keep throwing money down the drain. Instead, we need to fix stuff and get things done. And the most urgent thing right now is, our residents are fighting for survival. Hi, I am Jason Wong, the only candidate who is an Economist by heart. Restarting the economy is the first order of business by lowering cost of living in Honolulu. Please, vote Jason Wong for Honolulu Mayor.

What qualities do you possess that you believe would make you a successful officeholder?

Acting as Change Strategist by identifying shift of residents' appetite and re-inventing operation to meet new business requirements and elevate residents' experience. Allocating resources, aligning business processes and systems to enable best practice, governance and compliance from inside the corporation in support of the corporate objectives. Conducting comparative analysis by evaluating strengths and weaknesses, and modifying administration operation by increasing transparency, efficiency, effectiveness. Implementing risk management system, risk treatment plan, crisis management procedures, quality & damage control process, capacity management, and business continuity model.

What legacy would you like to leave?

Restoring the Golden Age where Oahu will be re-coined as the Geneva of the Pacific - the pivotal hub that connects North America and Asia countries on social, economic, political arena. "Pursuit of Happiness"
where prosperity and happiness can be found in every Honolulu household.

What was the last song that got stuck in your head?

Robert Schumann's Träumerei, "Kinderszenen" No. 7, Scenes from Childhood. This music notes were composed in 1838. When my beloved cat, Kuku, and my beloved dog, Ricky, passed away around 17 years old due to terminal cancer, I played this piece with my piano to say final good bye to them while tears dripping down my chin. It does hurt me about that they are no longer with me as I will always love them dearly from my heart...

What is something that has been a struggle in your life?

During this whole campaigning process, it hurts to see that, for-profit media like newspaper, TV stations, radio stations were bought out by lobbyists, union leaders to endorse and promote selective poorly-curated choices of candidates in the public eyes. There is no equal opportunity for all candidates to have equal chance of addressing to the public about their vision and policy. As an independent candidate who does not accept any favor or money from union leader, special interest group nor past/present politicians, this "I scratch-your-back, you scratch mine" vicious cycle is happening almost everyday. The public needs to understand that, there are options, and they have to understand, all these for-profit media outlets have hidden agenda by limiting voices in this election. In addition, those green-movement or so-called environmental-friendly non-profit organizations, they put their endorsement and donation money on those candidates who said or advocated about reducing carbon footprint or saving the environment, but look at how many plastic banners and posters that littered around the community. After the election, all these items are toxic waste. I am different from other candidates, my campaign is 100% virtual mean, no environmental impact at all. In addition, I do not allow my supporters and volunteers to do any hand-waving, clustered-gathering - that's very dangerous as the pandemic is still here - I cannot tolerate being so selfish to allow others to have any possibility to catch any illness - so if anyone wants to contact me, it will be by virtual mean - as I totally respect the CDC guideline. I hope other candidates will also stop manufacturing plastic banners or force volunteer to do cluster gathering. It's just not right!

A mayor is a leader in his or her city. What does that mean to you?

The mayor is the City Architect whose primary responsibilities include making major corporate decisions, managing the overall operations and resources, acting as the main point of communication, and being the public face of the administration. Hi I am Ho Yin (Jason) Wong is running for Honolulu Mayor. I served as the Chief Governance & Information Officer for a cloud technology company. I have many years of corporate governance, compliance, audit, interdepartmental collaboration, root cause analysis, corrective and preventive actions experience. As most of these processes have been conspicuously missing in our current city administration, I do bring a highly relevant skill set to the job. Furthermore, I am an independent candidate who does not accept any union, special interest group nor lobbyist's endorsement or financial support. I strongly believe in government of "by the people, for the people" and will not let special interests disrupt that. In addition, I have a BA degree in Economics and MBA degree in Negotiation & Human Resource Management, and I strongly believe in an open economy with positive effect of (smartly) lowering taxes, de-centralizing government administration through outsourcing jobs to local, good-standing small business operators. I am an Economist by heart who aims to bring back the Golden Age of Oahu where happiness and prosperity can be shared among all residents of Honolulu.

Our residents work hard for their money, and deserve better than recycled politicians and empty promises. And we don't have the luxury of time for "change" or to keep throwing money down the drain.

Instead, we need to fix stuff and get things done. And the most urgent thing right now is, our residents are fighting for survival. Restarting the economy is the first order of business by lowering cost of living in Honolulu. Please, vote Jason Wong for Honolulu Mayor.

If the mayor in your city is a member of the city council and there's a city manager appointed to handle the day-to-day administration of the city government, what do you believe should be the mayor's top priority in office?

#1 - Implement Mental Health and Substance Abuse Program

There is a major mental health crisis in our nation, it comes down to us in the City and County of Honolulu to ensure the safety to our residents and visitors, and to bring the help that they need to those who suffer from mental health or substance abuse issue

It is our job as a community to help those in need to get back on their feet and become productive members of society again. I would create a Mental Health & Substance Abuse Treatment Panel consists of Experts and advocate for a comprehensive treatment plan, from A to Z - from rehab through assistance with positive re-integration into society by guiding these individuals to find a job and housing. By taking mental health and substance abuse off our streets, treating it, and integrating those individuals back into our society, we are creating a stronger society, but also creating a larger base of tax-payers, this will help to pay for the treatment and society integration programs.

1. 2 -Pandemic-Proof Business Continuity Plan
   

We are living in the age where a super-virus can be introduced to the world at any given time, we cannot just shut down economy like we did in 2020. While tourism seems to be the low hanging fruit for Oahu to rebound from great depression, we need to ensure local business operators are well-equipped with a pandemic-proof business continuity plan.

Just like any given year of hurricane season, Oahu residents are urged to prepare the worst if such devastated weather hit our island.

My administration will work with business operators to author business continuity plan when certain contagious disease is circulating - this is how we can stop any unnecessary future lockdown. Business continuity plan should be part of Oahu business operators standard operating procedures. Together, we will build a city that mitigates and reduces the effects of any future pandemic and makes practical sense without killing the economy, again.

What do you perceive to be your city's greatest challenges over the next decade?

For the long-term, we absolutely need to diversify our economy from the current over-reliance on tourism. My plan is to do all that we can, at the city and county level, to grow the high-wage, high-growth and pandemic-resistant IT sector in Honolulu, including investing in IT education for our kama'aiana, alongside encouraging more film and TV production here, which again creates more high-paying jobs.

The point behind the Honolulu 2.0 plan is to give our residents more stable, better paying, career options - moving beyond tourism, raising our per-capita GDP. It's the Economist in me - my formal education, and my MBA - speaking.

Why I.T.? IT holds the keys to the future: it is the sector with the highest sustained rate of growth, that will only further accelerate and continue to eclipse other parts of the economy. Jobs in IT are recession and pandemic proof, and can be done from anywhere in the world, and are some of the better paying jobs anywhere. Our multicultural, multilingual, sharp and capable population, coupled with a highly advantageous time zone and geographic location, make Honolulu a natural IT hub - something so obvious that our politicians of yesterday have failed to see. With some help from the city government, such as incentives for IT businesses and new and existing education institutions, we can finally move Honolulu into the 21st century, and be ready for - and part of - the future.
Second, the film business has always had presence in Honolulu. But, I will make sure that it is so much more. Through targeted outreach, film production friendly policies, and potentially some select public-private partnerships, I will work tirelessly to bring more film & TV production to Honolulu, while promoting the training and employment of local staff. Many cities, like Vancouver, Canada, have done extremely well by actively encouraging film production in the city.

To learn more about my vision and policy, please visit: 2020jasonwong.com

Note: Ballotpedia reserves the right to edit Candidate Connection survey responses. Any edits made by Ballotpedia will be clearly marked with [brackets] for the public. If the candidate disagrees with an edit, he or she may request the full removal of the survey response from Ballotpedia.org. Ballotpedia does not edit or correct typographical errors unless the candidate's campaign requests it.

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