In 1873, Gibson started his own newspaper to extol his virtues in English and Hawaiian called the Nuhou.
He successfully ran for the House of Representatives in 1878
as a candidate of the King's Party, allying himself with King Kalakaua and portraying himself as the "voice of Hawaiians".
 In 1880 he bought the Pacific Commercial Advertiser (now the Honolulu Advertiser).

In 1882, he was appointed Minister of Foreign Affairs, and then on June 30, 1886, Prime Minister of the Kingdom of Hawaii by King Kalākaua.
He also served on various boards, as Attorney General, Minister of the Interior, and Secretary of War.
He often held several cabinet positions simultaneously, and at one point, the cabinet consisted of only him and Minister of Finance John Mākini Kapena, resulting in newspapers labeling him the "Minister of Everything".

Gibson was widely credited with encouraging Kalākaua to make rash political moves, which eventually led to the imposition of the 1887 Constitution of the Kingdom of Hawaii.
One of his bolder plans included an attempt to build a Pacific empire, which drew the ire of both the international and local Hawaiian communities.

Sending the "homemade battleship" Kaimiloa to Samoa in 1887 resulted in suspicions from the German Navy and embarrassment for the conduct of the crew.
In 1873, Gibson started his own newspaper to extol his virtues in English and Hawaiian called the Nuhou. He successfully ran for the House of Representatives in 1878
as a candidate of the King's Party, allying himself with King Kalakaua and portraying himself as the "voice of Hawaiians".  In 1880 he bought the Pacific Commercial Advertiser (now the Honolulu Advertiser).
In 1882, he was appointed Minister of Foreign Affairs, and then on June 30, 1886, Prime Minister of the Kingdom of Hawaii by King Kalākaua. He also served on various boards, as Attorney General, Minister of the Interior, and Secretary of War. He often held several cabinet positions simultaneously, and at one point, the cabinet consisted of only him and Minister of Finance John Mākini Kapena, resulting in newspapers labeling him the "Minister of Everything".
Gibson was widely credited with encouraging Kalākaua to make rash political moves, which eventually led to the imposition of the 1887 Constitution of the Kingdom of Hawaii. One of his bolder plans included an attempt to build a Pacific empire, which drew the ire of both the international and local Hawaiian communities.
Sending the "homemade battleship" Kaimiloa to Samoa in 1887 resulted in suspicions from the German Navy and embarrassment for the conduct of the crew.
Walter M. Gibson