As my colleague Nathan Eagle reports, state House and Senate leaders sometimes host political fundraisers that support their colleagues.

They especially like to do that in election years, and at the same time the Hawaii Legislature is meeting.

On Monday night at Jade Dynasty Restaurant, six Democratic reps raised money together: Calvin Say, Sharon Har, Jimmy Tokioka, Isaac Choy, Jo Jordan and Derek Kawakami.

The suggested donation was a Ben Franklin, but Choy indicated he would accept as much as $2,000.

What do you think: Do people give money to politicians primarily because they support them, or is it to influence how they vote?