Civil Beat Election Pop-Ups On Maui, Kauai This Week
We’re hosting election forums with a slew of county council candidates.
County Council candidates on Maui and Kauai will be available to answer questions and meet voters at two election-focused pop-up newsrooms scheduled for this week.
Both sessions will be hosted by Civil Beat politics editor Chad Blair who will be talking to candidates about key issues on each island. You’ll also be able to submit questions for the candidates during the event.
First up is Maui. On Wednesday, a dozen candidates vying for seats on the council are expected to join us at the J. Walter Cameron Center, 95 Malahani St. in Wailuku. The forum starts at 6 p.m. and ends at 7:30 p.m.
The candidates who have confirmed they’ll be there are Lorien Acquintas (West Maui), Alice Lee and James Forrest (Wailuku-Waihee-Waikapu), Tasha Kama and Carol Lee Kamekona (Kahului), Tom Cook and Kelly King (South Maui), Nara Boone (Makawao-Haiku-Paia), Yuki Lei Sugimura and Jocelyn Cruz (Upcountry) and Keani Rawlins-Fernandez and John Pele (Molokai).
Nohe Uu-Hodgins and Tamara Paltin are incumbents running for reelection but did not agree to attend the forum.
All nine Maui council seats are up for election this year. But two council members — Shane Sinenci (East Maui) and Gabe Johnson (Lanai) — faced no opposition. The remaining seven seats each have two candidates facing off in the Nov. 5 general election.
All the candidates on the ballot for Maui County Council answered Civil Beat’s candidate survey this year. Their Q&As can be found on our general election ballot page; scroll down to the Maui County section or search for a candidate name.
On Kauai, 14 candidates are competing for the seven council seats, all of which are on the ballot. On Kauai, the top 14 finishers in the primary advance to the general election.
Civil Beat’s forum featuring Kauai candidates will be held on Friday from 5:30 p.m. to 7 p.m. at the Kauai Community College Fine Arts Auditorium, 3-1901 Kaumualii Highway in Lihue.
The candidates who have committed to being there are Ross Kagawa, Billy DeCosta, Fern Holland, Mel Rapozo, Addison Bulosan, Felicia Cowden, Butch Keahiolalo, KipuKai Kualii and Abe Apilado.
The seats are not divided by geography so all voters can vote for all seven seats. Most of the candidates filled out our Candidate Q&As which can be found here.
Our election forums are a good opportunity to learn more about the people hoping to represent you in public office. Light pupus and beverages will be available and there should be plenty of time to mingle with the candidates after the formal session ends.
Civil Beat鈥檚 pop-up newsrooms are supported by the Hawaii Community Foundation and the American Press Institute鈥檚 Election Coverage and Community Listening Fund.
