User:Christopher Lum Lee

Christopher Lum Lee (born April 1, 1986) is a former Hawaiian political candidate, currently employed by the State of Hawaii.

On February 1, 2014 Lum Lee announced his intention to run for Office of Hawaiian Affairs Trustee in the 2014 Hawaii elections, but went on to lose in the primary election by placing second to sitting OHA Trustee Peter Apo out of four candidates.

Early life, education, and academic career
Christopher Lum Lee was raised in the Honolulu. He attended Saint Patrick School up to the eigth grade before being accepted to Damien Memorial School. During his time there, he was active with the school yearbook, newspaper, JROTC, and Speech and Debate. During his junior and senior year, he began taking night classes at Honolulu Community College, despite opposite from the then-Damien Memorial School Principal Michael Weaver. He graduated in 2004. In the spring of 2005, Lum Lee graduated from Honolulu Community College with an Associate's Degree in Administration of Justice, then continued to finish his Bachelor's Degree in Public Administration in 2006. Upon graduation, Lum Lee began to work for Diagnostic Laboratory Services, Inc. as a lab assistant. While there, he continued his education studying Business Administration and Biology/Microbiolgy.

Government Career
In 2008, Lum Lee began his career in government, holding several positions within the State government and City & County of Honolulu government. He has worked for the Department of Education, Judiciary, Department of Health, Department of Human Services, and the Office of Hawaiian Affairs. Lum Lee has worked with various programs in areas such as juvenile delinquency, health emergency preparedness, and legislative affairs.

State House Race
In 2008, Lum Lee ran for the then-32nd District State House seat held by Roy Takumi. Lum Lee lost the primary election due to failing to garner enough votes as a non-partisan candidate to advance to the general election.

Honolulu City Council
In 2009, he launched an exploratory committee in preparation for a run for the Honolulu City Council District 8 seat that was open due to then-Councilmember Gary Okino's term limits. Ultimately, he did not run for the Honolulu City Council seat. Instead, he opted to help former Prosecuting Attorney Peter Carlisle in his campaign for Honolulu Mayor.

OHA Trustee
Lum Lee announced his intention to run for the Oahu seat of the OHA Trustees on February 1, 2014, and challenging the sitting Trustee, Peter Apo. He joined Apo, and two other challengers, Jackie Burke and Chace Shigemasa. In the primary election, he placed second of the four, but not garnering enough votes to advance to the general election.

Pearl City Neighborhood Board
At the January 2010 Pearl City Neighborhood Board meeting, Lum Lee criticized the alleged incident where then-Mayor Mufi Hannemann followed President Barack Obama to Haunama Bay but was turned away by secret service, leading Hannemann to reportedly threaten to pull City workers from the park in retaliation. In response, then-State Representative K. Mark Takai admonished the Board for allowing Lum Lee to voice his criticism and recommended sanctioning Lum Lee. This led to a feud between Lum Lee and Takai that has since ended.

Magic Island Renaming
In 2010, Hannemann had introduced legislation for the Honolulu City Council to rename Magic Island after President Barack Obama. The Council raised concerns about the timing of the legislation, as Hannemann had announced plans to run for Governor in the 2010 elections. Lum Lee testified before the Council that Hannemann wants to rename Magic Island the "Magic Barack Obama Memorial I-want-your-endorsement-so-I-can-become-Governor-this-year Park".

Kauai Office of the Prosecuting Attorney
In October 2012, then-Kauai Prosecuting Attorney Shaylene Iseri-Carvalho, involved in a political and personal feud with County officials and community members, refused to send juvenile offender referrals from her office to the Kauai Teen Court Program. When the Kauai County Council questioned her decision, she stated the Lum Lee informed her that a procurement violation had taken place, resulting in a moratorium on referrals. State Office of Youth Services Executive Director David Hipp informed the County Council that Lum Lee had erred in his determination. Lum Lee then issued a statement that says: "The two concerns I have with this issue is that first, for an Executive Director who has contracting authority to not have any knowledge about Chapter 103 of the Hawaii Revised Statutes relating to procurement law is extremely incensing. Second, I've been vocal for the last several months that we should not be involved with the Kauai OPA while the political battles are going on, but then, my superiors at the Office of Youth Services would rather listen to themselves than to do what is the most sensible and obvious thing to do."

Personal Life
Lum Lee remains active within the community. He formerly sat on the Board of Directors for the Hawaii Public Health Association where he oversaw legislative affairs. He has been active with the District 50 Lions Club. And he was a former contributing writer for Seeking Alpha.com. Lum Lee has also been supportive of different organizations such as Planned Parenthood, the Hawaii Food Bank, and the Boys and Girls Club.