Hawaii Democratic Revolution of 1954

**Hawaii Democratic Revolution** of 1954
	Kekaha sugar mill once owned by Amfac, Inc., one of the Big Five.
Date	1 September 1946 – 6 June 1958; (11 years, 9 months and 5 days)
Location	Hawaiian Islands
Participants	People; John A. Burns; Jack W. Hall; Daniel Inouye; William S. Richardson; Jack Kawano; Charles Fujimoto; Parties; Democratic Party of Hawaii; Communist Party of Hawaii; Other Former 442nd Regiment; ILWU; Sugar Plantation Workers; Pineapple Plantation Workers;
Outcome	State of Hawaii established.; Improved working conditions and standard of living.; Big Five lose political and economic control of Hawaii.; Democrats become dominant party.; Republicans become minority party.;

The Hawaii Democratic Revolution of 1954 is a popular term for the territorial elections of 1954 in which the long dominance of the Hawaii Republican Party in the legislature came to an abrupt end, replaced by the Democratic Party of Hawaii which has remained dominant since. The shift was preceded by general strikes, protests, and other acts of civil disobedience that took place in the Hawaiian Archipelago. The strikes by the Isles' labor workers demanded similar pay and benefits to their Mainland counterparts. The strikes also crippled the power of the sugarcane plantations and the Big Five Oligopoly over their workers.

In the 1950 Democratic Convention, John A. Burns was elected chairman of the convention and decided that the Party was ready for a strong push at the 1950 elections. But with its progress, the party was dividing into two factions: the right-wing "Walkout" who opposed Burns and the left-wing "Standpat" members who supported Burns. Among the Standpats was John H. Wilson, the founder of the Democratic Party of Hawaii himself: although he did not always agree with Burns, Wilson allied with him. With the fracture of the conservative members, the party began to slide farther leftward. Burns wished to re-establish the party ideology as center-left. He had Party members sign an affidavit pledging their loyalty to the Democratic Party and not the Communist Party, to deflect communist criticisms and keep the far-left in check. During this time communists refrained from discussing their ideology. The rivalry between the two halves of the Democratic Party led to several defeats in the elections against the Republicans. President Dwight D. Eisenhower appointed Republican Samuel Wilder King as governor. King acted as an obstructionist by using the veto 71 times during his administration. Following statehood, Burns – who, until then, had lost his elections – was elected Governor of Hawaii. The strike campaign by the ILWU continued until 1958 when another large sugar strike called the Aloha Strike took place from February 1 to June 6 and ended the campaign.