Like spotting a kolea in August, you can't tell for sure if it's the first out there, but he's definitely an early bird.

Stanley Chang might not be the first, but he's certainly early. The election is a year away and already he's going door-to-door, canvassing neighborhoods in his bid for a seat on the Honolulu City Council. Last Friday, under blazing voggy skies, there he was knocking on doors in East Honolulu. He had already been at it for almost two months.

"I started in September of this year," Chang said in an e-mail interview.

District 4 covers Ala Moana Beach Park to Makapuu Point. Chang is planning to walk it all, every hill and staircase, and more than once.

"It will take a lot of long days, but canvassing is actually my favorite part of campaigning," Chang said.

The 27-year-old graduate of Iolani and Harvard was born and raised in the district. He left law firm Cades Schutte (where he had Councilman Charles Djou's old office) to run to replace Djou, who is running for Congress. He's campaigning full time, living off savings with support from his parents.

The pamphlets he leaves on people's doors show a face so young and earnest he looks like he's running for student council. However, in March Harvard law alumni held a fundraiser in Cambridge, Mass., for his candidacy, which was attended by state Sen. Colleen Hanabusa, who announced her support for Chang. That kind of political weight is more than student council. It's even more than City Council.

But still he's out there walking and knocking on doors, often all by himself.

"I wear long-sleeve, non-iron shirts, slacks and very comfortable shoes. I wear an orange fabric lei as my 'perma-lei.' It's very bright. I also wear a lot of sunscreen — two kinds in fact!"

Chang says people have offered him cookies, water and dinner, as well as tissues to wipe his sweat.

"Some people really take an interest in my canvassing their neighborhood, even to the point of getting into their cars and searching for me to talk story some more after I have left my flier with them or on their door. Some even try to set me up on dates with a friend or relative!" he said.

He declined the dates. He's determined to focus solely on his campaign.

"The top issues people bring up are the rail, the school furloughs and taxes. Often people have very specific local issues, too, like the pothole in front of their driveway or their neighbor's overgrown tree."

Chang says he's waiting for his first dog bite as a rite of passage. So far, no neighbors have bitten either, but it's early yet. Very early.