HONOLULU — At the request of the National Guard Bureau, the Hawaii National Guard is set to deploy about 200 of its members to Washington, D.C., to aid in and facilitate the peaceful transition of presidential power, Gov. David Ige’s office announced this afternoon.
The members will arrive prior to Inauguration Day on Wednesday, Jan. 20, where they are prepared to perform a multitude of missions in support of local law enforcement.
“The Hawaii National Guard is prepared to support the effort in Washington, D.C., to ensure a peaceful transition of power and a smooth Inauguration Day following a free and fair election,” Ige said in a written statement. “I thank our Guard members for their dedication to protecting our democracy during these challenging times.”
Maj. Gen. Kenneth S. Hara, adjutant general for the state Department of Defense, said the Hawaii National Guard received a request Wednesday to provide Guardsmen in support of the inauguration, and soldiers are reporting today.
“The Hawaii National Guard continues to impress me with their ability to respond to the most difficult challenges, Hara said. “They definitely epitomize the National Guard’s ‘Always Ready, Always There’ motto.”
Roughly 800 guardsmen are still activated for COVID-19 support and the deployment of these members will not impact the effort to support Hawaii. There are nearly 4,000 Guard members that will remain in the islands to assist with any local disasters.
For security reasons, specifics about the deployment cannot be released at this time, according to Ige’s office.