National Liberal Party (Hawaii)

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The National Liberal Party of the Hawaiian Kingdom, also called the Liberal Party, was a short-lived political party in the Kingdom of Hawaii around 1892. It was founded in January 1892 in Honolulu as a radical offshoot of the moderate National Reform Party.

Ideology and goals
- Inspired by European National Liberal ideas, it promoted liberal nationalism, civic nationalism, and progressivism.
- The party believed government should rest on Liberty, Equality, and Fraternity, and that all people are born free and equal before the law with rights to life, liberty, property, and the pursuit of happiness.
- It aimed to revise international treaties and to help Native Hawaiians buy farmland and obtain homesteads.
- Economically, it supported measures to curb monopolies, trusts, and privileged classes, and favored progressive taxation that taxed corporations and the wealthy while aiding the poor.

Leadership and activities
- The first president was John Edward Bush, with Joseph K. Nawahi as vice president.
- After an October 1892 special election, Nawahi became president and John K. Prendergast became vice president.
- The party published a newsletter called The Liberal and maintained a gun club, the International Rifle Association.

Context
- The Liberal Party sought to break legislative deadlock in the Kingdom of Hawaii by working with the National Reformers. It existed during a tumultuous period near the end of the Hawaiian monarchy.