He is the first U.S. Senator of Native Hawai'ian ancestry and is the only Chinese American member of the Senate (and one of two Senators with Japanese ancestry).
He was first elected to the UnitedStates House of Representatives in 1976 to represent Hawaii's Second Congressional District.
Akaka was appointed to the Senate in April 1990 to serve temporarily in place of the late Senator Spark M. Matsunaga, and sworn into office on May 16, 1990.