While more 2006 Kaua‘i election-year supporters have begun campaigning, only a small number of candidates for the mayor’s office, the Kaua‘i County Council and three state House seats have filed nomination papers. With a July 25 deadline for filing the
While more 2006 Kaua‘i election-year supporters have begun campaigning, only a small number of candidates for the mayor’s office, the Kaua‘i County Council and three state House seats have filed nomination papers.
With a July 25 deadline for filing the papers with state election officers, only nine of the 28 candidates who pulled papers have actually filed, including incumbent Mayor Bryan Baptiste.
A long-time leader Kaua‘i Democratic Party leader called the trend strange.
“When people run for public office, they usually file as soon as possible,” he said. “They may not want to do so because they want to see who will be running against them.”
Baptiste, a Kapa‘a resident, Jesse Fukushima of Lihu‘e, David Hamman of Princeville, John Hoff of Koloa, Krstafer Pinkerton of Koloa and Bruce Pleas of Kekaha have taken out papers, but only Fukushima and Hoff have filed them.
Fukushima is a retired Kaua‘i County Council member. If elected, he said he will explore all forms of traffic-relief methods, including building more highways and expanding the county’s bus system, revamping the property tax system and finding more land for affordable housing.
He said he is running because those problems have festered for years without resolution.
Baptiste has forged his own solutions and has worked with developers and nonprofit groups to build more affordable housing. He has talked with Gov. Linda Lingle to use state lands for affordable housing, mobilized residents and organizations to fight the war on drugs and worked closely with the governors, businesses and residents on traffic solutions.
Hoff, meanwhile, has lobbied for a citizen-driven property tax reform and better benefits for substitute teachers.
Hoff said the county government’s decision not to implement the Ohana Kaua‘i charter amendment on property tax reform spurred him to run for mayor.
The council and Baptiste have raised constitutional issues over whether the Ohana Kaua‘i measure can affect the taxing authority of government.
In the meantime, the council and the Baptiste administration have passed a law that gives the same property tax relief benefit under the Ohana Kaua‘i measure.
The council race, meanwhile, boasts 14 candidates so far. Only Tim Bynum of Kapa‘a, Bob Cariffe of Lihu‘e, Jay Furfaro of Princeville, Joseph Ka‘auwai of Anahola, Mel Rapozo, an incumbent councilman from Lihu‘e, and Dr. Monroe Richmond of Koloa have filed nomination papers.
Shawn August of Kealia, Bill De Costa of Koloa, Ming Fang of Kilauea, Shaylene Iseri-Carvalho, an incumbent councilwoman from Kapa‘a, Ron Kouchi of Lihu‘e, K.C. Lum of Hanapepe, Krstafer Pinkerton of Koloa and Helena Romano of Kalaheo have yet to put their names on the printed line.
Bynum currently serves as the executive director of Leadership Kaua‘i and was the founder of Friends of Kamalani.
Cariffe has run unsuccessfully for the council in the past and is best know for advocating a litter-free island.
Furfaro is an incumbent councilman who heads the council’s Economic Development Committee and is a Princeville executive. Furfaro and incumbent councilman Daryl Kaneshiro, who has yet to pull nomination papers, successfully pushed through property tax relief measures for homeowners.
Ka‘auwai is a Kaua‘i police officer who was applauded by government officials after he developed a strategy that allows traffic to move easily and quickly through the Kuhio Highway and Kapule Highway intersection in Hanama‘ulu during the afternoon commute.
Rapozo, a retired police officer and Lihu‘e businessman, has pushed for more fiscal responsibility by the county administration, more affordable housing, effective traffic plans and implementation of workable solid waste plans.
Richman is a member of the Ohana Kaua‘i, which successfully pushed through a charter amendment to help homeowners control tax bills.
Kouchi has yet to file. He led the council as its chairman numerous times during his 20-year tenure. He left the council for an unsuccessful run for mayor in 2001.
Among the current incumbent members of the seven-member council, chairman Kaipo Asing and councilmember JoAnn Yukimura have not taken out nomination papers yet.
Some residents want a change in the leadership of the council, saying the time is right because development has gone amok, traffic problems have not been solved and the council has not responded properly to the demands of residents.
The council disagrees, and says while problems exist in government, they are not solvable.
The Ohana Kaua‘i feels a change is needed, and has backed a slate of candidates to unseat the incumbents. The group has backed the candidacies of Kouchi, Fang, Richman and Lum.
With council vice-chairman James Tokioka leaving the council to run for the state House of Representatives District 15 seat (Lihu‘e-Koloa), at least one seat on the seven-member council will be filled by Kouchi, Fang, Richman and Lum.
Lihu‘e Democrat Ezra Kanoho is vacating the seat after 20 consecutive years of service, endorsing Tokioka as his successor on his way out.
For the Republican side of the District 15 race, only architect Ron Agor, a Kaua‘i representative on the state Land Board and Kaua‘i Republican Party leader, has filed nomination papers. Linda Estes of Koloa and Russell Grady of Lihu‘e have taken out papers to challenge Agor, but have not filed.
Also up for grabs is the state House seat for District 16 (Ni‘ihau, Lehua, Koloa, Waimea), now occupied by Bertha Kawakami, who has not filed papers yet.
Her opponents are JoAnne S. Georgi of Kalaheo and Rhoda Libre of Kaumakani. Both have yet to file nomination papers to challenge Kawakami.
In the House District 14 (Hanalei, Anahola, Kealia, Kapa‘a, Waipouli) race, Hermina Morita, an incumbent, has yet to file nomination papers.
State Sen. Gary Hooser, D-Kaua‘i-Ni‘ihau, meanwhile, will be among 20 candidate vying for the 2nd Congressional District seat.
Hooser chose to run after the current holder, Ed Case, announced in January he would challenge for U.S. Sen. Daniel Akaka’s seat in the September primary election.
If Hooser wins the House seat in Congress, Lingle will appoint a Democrat to fill Hooser’s seat.
Hooser’s term runs for four years, and he won’t run for re-election to the state Senate seat until 2008.
Hooser, a former Kaua‘i County Council member, has been strong on Hawaiian, environmental and educational issues, and earned a reputation for his anti-drug measures.
Other candidates for the 2nd Congressional District have come to Kaua‘i as well.
Joe Zuiker, an attorney and marathon runner from O‘ahu, recently ran through some neighborhoods of Kaua‘i as part of his campaigning. He also held an election sign by the old Oki Restaurant on Kuhio Highway.
Zuiker called for the U.S. military to leave Iraq and an immediate end to pork barrel spending by Congress to begin whittling a $9-trillon national debt.
Zuiker, who was Peace Corp volunteer in the 1960s, said he would like to start a national program that would allow for thousands of Muslim children to visit the United States.
The program would allow the children to see Americans as kind and caring people who can work with different cultures to make the world a better place.
Campaigning for Kaua‘i candidates, meanwhile, has gotten under way.
One of the most influential leaders of the Kaua‘i Democratic Party, Turk Tokita, manned Akaka’s headquarters on Hardy Street Friday.
Tokita, a member of the state’s Democratic Party since 1952, helped John Burns get elected as a territorial delegate to Congress in that year. “I supported him because he wanted statehood,” Tokita said.
Because of his connections, Tokita, also has been credited with helping to make or break Kaua‘i politicians.
Tokita said he supports Akaka because “he has seniority and has established himself as a man of accomplishments.”
Akaka has lobbied for congressional approval of the Akaka Bill, which seeks to give Native Hawaiians the same federal recognition given to Native Americans.
Akaka has advocated a strong national defense, ways to strengthen national security, safe disposal of low-level radioactive waste, improved agricultural programs and care and preservation of natural resources.
“He made a lot of friends in Congress,” Tokita said. “We need to send him back.”
Akaka is scheduled to attend a luncheon at the Hanapepe Hongwanji Church from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. on Saturday.
Louis Abrams said while he has high regard for both Tokita and Akaka, he and many residents are putting their money on Case.
“Everyone respects Akaka and we are trying to be more low-key,” Abrams said. “We are confident our electorate is savvy and can figure things out.”
Among many other causes, Case has pushed for effective national leadership, a balanced budget, strengthened homeland security programs with input from citizens and permanent protection for the Nonwestern Hawaiian Islands, which has been declared a national monument by President Bush.
As for Tokita lending his support, “Turk Tokita is a legend, and we welcome him as a competitor,” Abrams said.
Canvassing and door-to-door visits have started up for both Tokioka and Agor.
“Many of my supporters are doing coffee hours, doing house-to-house campaigning with brochures and Kaua‘i cookies,” Tokioka said.
Tokioka wants to push forward with traffic relief plans for the Waipouli and Kapa‘a areas, continue to work with the state Department of Hawaiian Home Lands to build more affordable housing units and help others who are not of Hawaiian ancestry get into affordable housing.
If elected, Agor said he wants to work with the state Department of Transportation on traffic relief plans in East and South Kaua‘i.
He also wants to exempt food and medicine from the state’s general excise tax.
“It affects the elderly and the less fortunate,” Agor said.
• Lester Chang, staff writer, can be reached at 245-3681 (ext. 225) or lchang@kauaipubco.com.
