U.S. House, Hawaii 1st Congressional District · Election November 3, 2026 · Updated
Who should I vote for in Hawaii's 1st Congressional District?
Ed Case has the strongest record in Hawaii's 1st Congressional District. Ed Case scores 66 out of 100 on the Ballot Standard, as of October 6, 2026. Ed Case's highest marks are relevant experience and results. Nathan Berning (4 of 15 criteria), Jordan Conley (4 of 15 criteria) and Adriel Lam (7 of 15 criteria) have too little public record to score. Every score comes from public records on character, qualifications and performance, the same way for every party.
Nonpartisan
Nathan Berning
On the ballot as Nathan M. Berning
Not enough public record for a score
Public evidence on 4 of 15 criteria
- Character
- NR
- Qualifications
- 44
- Performance
- NR
Democratic · incumbent
Strongest record
Ed Case
66 / 100
Public evidence on 14 of 15 criteria
- Character
- 55
- Qualifications
- 75
- Performance
- 69
Green
Jordan Conley
On the ballot as Jordan S. Conley
Not enough public record for a score
Public evidence on 4 of 15 criteria
- Character
- NR
- Qualifications
- 44
- Performance
- NR
Republican
Adriel Lam
On the ballot as Adriel C. Lam
Not enough public record for a score
Public evidence on 7 of 15 criteria
- Character
- 50
- Qualifications
- 44
- Performance
- NR
The good, the bad and the unresolved
The record
The notable facts of each candidate's public life, each tied to a source and confirmed to be this person. Unresolved matters are labeled with where they stand and do not move a score.
Nathan Berning
No notable items confirmed in news archives or public documents.
Ed Case
- Mark against2026-04-06
Reported seven 2024 and 2025 automatic dividend reinvestments of his spouse's Apple stock past the STOCK Act's 45-day deadline; he told NOTUS they were inadvertent omissions.
Sources: House Clerk periodic transaction report, Filing ID 20034221, NOTUS, April 8, 2026
- On the record2026-06-17
Declined to debate state Sen. Jarrett Keohokalole or join a Civil Beat candidate forum before the August 2026 Democratic primary.
- On the record2025-03-06
Was one of 10 House Democrats who voted with Republicans to censure Democratic Rep. Al Green for disrupting the president's address to Congress.
Sources: Honolulu Civil Beat, March 7, 2025, House Clerk Roll Call 62, 2025
- On the record2021-08-12
Signed a letter with eight other House Democrats to Speaker Pelosi seeking a vote on the bipartisan infrastructure bill before the $3.5 trillion budget resolution.
Sources: NPR, Aug. 13, 2021, Roll Call, Aug. 2, 2021
- On the record2019-01-16
Said at an Asian and Pacific Islander American event that he was 'an Asian trapped in a white body,' then issued a statement of regret the next day.
Source: CNN, Jan. 17, 2019
- Credit2023-01-05
Provisions of his Ka'ena Point National Heritage Area study bill were incorporated into a heritage area law signed Jan. 5, 2023.
Jordan Conley
No notable items confirmed in news archives or public documents.
Adriel Lam
No notable items confirmed in news archives or public documents.
Who they are
Character
Integrity
Tells the truth, keeps their word, and takes no private gain from public office.
Nathan Berning. No public record found.
Ed Case. On April 6, 2026 reported seven automatic dividend reinvestments of his spouse's Apple stock from 2024 and 2025, past the 45-day STOCK Act deadline; he called them inadvertent omissions.
Sources: House Clerk periodic transaction report, Filing ID 20034221, NOTUS, April 8, 2026
Jordan Conley. No public record found.
Adriel Lam. Filed the House Clerk notice that his campaign had not raised or spent over $5,000; his FEC committee is registered with no financial activity posted. No official finding found.
Sources: House Clerk candidate notice, Doc ID 40004962, FEC candidate page
Courage
Takes a stand that costs them something, including telling their own side no.
Nathan Berning. No public record found.
Ed Case. Signed an August 2021 letter with eight Democrats pressing Speaker Pelosi on the infrastructure vote, and in 2025 and 2026 voted against Leader Jeffries and most Democrats on the Al Green censure, the SAVE Act and the 2026 appropriations package.
Sources: NPR, Aug. 13, 2021, House Clerk Roll Call 62, 2025, Al Green censure, House Clerk Roll Call 102, 2025, SAVE Act, House Clerk Roll Call 53, 2026, Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2026
Jordan Conley. No public record found.
Adriel Lam. No public record found.
Accountability
Owns mistakes, answers hard questions, and works in the open.
Nathan Berning. No public record found.
Ed Case. Lists in-person Talk Story community meetings in January 2025 and January 2026 plus telephone town halls. Declined to debate his 2026 primary challenger or join a Civil Beat forum. No general election debate record found.
Sources: Office site, Events, Honolulu Civil Beat, June 17, 2026
Jordan Conley. No public record found.
Adriel Lam. Took part in a September 2026 student question-and-answer session at Punahou School as the Republican nominee. No 2026 general election debate record found.
Temperament and judgment
Steady under pressure, decides on evidence, and treats opponents and staff with respect.
Nathan Berning. No public record found.
Ed Case. Has served in the Hawaii House (1994 to 2002) and the U.S. House (2003 to 2007, and since 2019). No censure, reprimand or House Ethics Committee finding found.
Sources: Ballotpedia, Ed Case, House Committee on Ethics site search
Jordan Conley. No public record found.
Adriel Lam. No public record found.
Fidelity to the oath
Uses power inside its limits: accepts certified results, obeys court rulings, follows the rules of the office.
Nathan Berning. No public record found.
Ed Case. Voted Nay on both January 2021 objections to the Arizona and Pennsylvania electoral votes. No official finding of misuse of office found.
Sources: House Clerk Roll Call 10, Jan. 6, 2021, House Clerk Roll Call 11, Jan. 7, 2021
Jordan Conley. No public record found.
Adriel Lam. Served in the U.S. Army from 1994 to 2018. No official finding of misuse of office found.
Source: Ballotpedia, Adriel Lam
What they bring
Qualifications
Relevant experience
Has done work that prepares them for this specific office.
Nathan Berning. Says he co-founded and helped lead a national nonprofit that helps women facing crisis pregnancies. Has not held public office.
Source: Campaign site
Ed Case. Has represented Hawaii in the U.S. House from 2003 to 2006 and since January 2019, after eight years in the Hawaii House including service as majority leader.
Source: GovTrack, Ed Case
Jordan Conley. Lists a high school diploma and work as an educator; lists no community organizations or prior offices. Little documented leadership experience.
Sources: Ballotpedia, Jordan Conley, Honolulu Civil Beat, Candidate Q&A
Adriel Lam. Retired after 24 years as a U.S. Army officer; lists service on the Hawaii Advisory Committee to the U.S. Commission on Civil Rights and the Oahu Metropolitan Planning Organization. Has not held elected office.
Sources: Ballotpedia, Adriel Lam, Punahou School Bulletin, Sept. 23, 2026
Command of the job
Knows the issues and knows what the office can and cannot do.
Nathan Berning. Publishes five priority areas, including housing and cost of living, in general terms.
Source: Campaign site
Ed Case. Sits on the House Appropriations Committee and its Defense and Homeland Security subcommittees; no chair or ranking post found. Publishes issue pages and answered Civil Beat's 2026 survey.
Sources: GovTrack, committee membership, Office site, home page
Jordan Conley. Publishes positions in general terms, including a push for a national universal health care vote and ranked choice voting.
Adriel Lam. States positions on cost of living, federal taxes, election security and infrastructure in general terms in two 2026 questionnaires.
Sources: Honolulu Civil Beat, Candidate Q&A, Ballotpedia, Adriel Lam
Communication
Explains plainly, persuades, and listens.
Nathan Berning. Publishes plain-language priority pages. Has not completed Ballotpedia's 2026 survey; no Civil Beat survey found.
Sources: Campaign site, Ballotpedia, Nathan Berning
Ed Case. Answered Civil Beat's 2026 candidate survey, sends a districtwide e-newsletter, holds Talk Story and telephone town halls, and publishes issue pages. Has not completed Ballotpedia's 2026 survey.
Sources: Honolulu Civil Beat, Candidate Q&A, Office site, home page, Ballotpedia, Ed Case
Jordan Conley. Completed Ballotpedia's 2026 Candidate Connection survey and Civil Beat's 2026 survey.
Sources: Ballotpedia, Jordan Conley, Honolulu Civil Beat, Candidate Q&A
Adriel Lam. Completed Ballotpedia's 2026 Candidate Connection survey and Civil Beat's 2026 general election survey.
Sources: Ballotpedia, Adriel Lam, Honolulu Civil Beat, Candidate Q&A
Roots in the constituency
Lives there, knows the people, and is funded by them.
Nathan Berning. His Hawaii candidate filing and FEC candidate record both list a Flagler Beach, Florida address.
Sources: Hawaii Office of Elections candidate filing list, FEC contribution totals by state
Ed Case. Born in Hilo, lives in Honolulu and served in the Hawaii House from 1994 to 2002. FEC by-state totals for 2025 to 2026 show about 34 percent of itemized individual contributions from Hawaii.
Sources: Ballotpedia, Ed Case, Honolulu Civil Beat, Candidate Q&A, FEC contribution totals by state
Jordan Conley. Lists his residence as Aiea on Oahu. No FEC contribution data is posted.
Adriel Lam. Lists his residence as Kaneohe, and his FEC candidate record gives a Kaneohe address. Kaneohe is on windward Oahu, outside the 1st District as its representative's office describes it.
Sources: Honolulu Civil Beat, Candidate Q&A, FEC contribution totals by state, Rep. Ed Case office site, district description
Management
Can build and run an organization.
Nathan Berning. No public record found.
Ed Case. Campaign committee reports are on file with the FEC through July 19, 2026. No FEC administrative fine found for Case for Congress.
Sources: FEC candidate page, FEC administrative fines search
Jordan Conley. No public record found.
Adriel Lam. No public record found.
What they deliver
Performance
Results
Turns ideas into outcomes.
Nathan Berning. No public record found.
Ed Case. Legislative Effectiveness Score of 0.864 in the 118th Congress against a benchmark of 0.530, exceeds expectations. GovTrack credits him with 5 enacted bills as primary sponsor.
Sources: Center for Effective Lawmaking House dataset, 93rd to 118th Congress, GovTrack, enacted legislation
Jordan Conley. No public record found.
Adriel Lam. No public record found.
Showing up
Does the basic work of the job.
Nathan Berning. No public record found.
Ed Case. Missed 185 of 6,304 roll call votes, 2.9 percent, over his House service from January 2003 to September 2026.
Source: GovTrack, missed votes
Jordan Conley. No public record found.
Adriel Lam. No public record found.
Constituent service
Solves problems for the people they represent.
Nathan Berning. No public record found.
Ed Case. Runs a Honolulu district office open weekdays, offers casework and federal agency help, and holds recurring Talk Story and veterans Talk Story meetings. No published casework totals found.
Sources: Office site, home page, Office site, Events
Jordan Conley. No public record found.
Adriel Lam. No public record found.
Coalition building
Wins support beyond their own faction.
Nathan Berning. No public record found.
Ed Case. Lugar Center Bipartisan Index score of -0.11551 in the 2023 House scores (118th Congress, first session), ranked 154 of 436.
Source: Lugar Center and McCourt School Bipartisan Index, House Scores
Jordan Conley. No public record found.
Adriel Lam. No public record found.
Stewardship of public money
Treats tax dollars as someone else's money.
Nathan Berning. No public record found.
Ed Case. No public record found.
Jordan Conley. No public record found.
Adriel Lam. No public record found.
How to read this
Each criterion is scored 0 to 4 against the written rubric in the Ballot Standard. NR means no record: there is no reliable public evidence either way, so the criterion is left out and never counts against the candidate. A total is published when at least 8 of 15 criteria have evidence.
A sitting officeholder has a longer public record than a first-time candidate, so the two totals rest on different amounts of evidence. Read the count of criteria beside each score. Low marks require an official finding or a primary record. Allegations and opinion are not used.
No policy position is scored. Evidence checked October 6, 2026. Campaigns and readers can send a correction with a public source to tpg@thepoliticalgroup.com.
Questions
Who should I vote for in Hawaii's 1st Congressional District?
Ed Case has the strongest record in Hawaii's 1st Congressional District. Ed Case scores 66 out of 100 on the Ballot Standard, as of October 6, 2026. Ed Case's highest marks are relevant experience and results. Nathan Berning (4 of 15 criteria), Jordan Conley (4 of 15 criteria) and Adriel Lam (7 of 15 criteria) have too little public record to score. Every score comes from public records on character, qualifications and performance, the same way for every party.
Who is running in Hawaii's 1st Congressional District in 2026?
Nathan Berning (Nonpartisan), Ed Case (Democratic, incumbent), Jordan Conley (Green), Adriel Lam (Republican). The general election is November 3, 2026.
Is Nathan Berning a good candidate for Congress?
Nathan Berning has public evidence on 4 of the 15 Ballot Standard criteria, short of the 8 needed for a score. The evidence that exists is shown on the scorecard. No record never counts against a candidate.
Is Ed Case a good candidate for Congress?
Ed Case scores 66 out of 100 on the Ballot Standard, with public evidence on 14 of 15 criteria: character 55 of 100, qualifications 75 of 100, performance 69 of 100. The standard measures character, qualifications and performance, not policy positions.
Is Jordan Conley a good candidate for Congress?
Jordan Conley has public evidence on 4 of the 15 Ballot Standard criteria, short of the 8 needed for a score. The evidence that exists is shown on the scorecard. No record never counts against a candidate.
Is Adriel Lam a good candidate for Congress?
Adriel Lam has public evidence on 7 of the 15 Ballot Standard criteria, short of the 8 needed for a score. The evidence that exists is shown on the scorecard. No record never counts against a candidate.
How is the strongest record decided?
The candidate with the highest Ballot Standard score has the strongest record. Each of 15 criteria on character, qualifications and performance is scored 0 to 4 from public records and established reporting, the same way for every party. No policy position is scored, and unresolved accusations never move a score.
More on this race: every Hawaii race scored, and the Hawaii 2026 election guide. Independent scorecard by The Political Group, not affiliated with any candidate or party.