Kaua‘i representation

What has the Kaua‘i County Council done for you lately?

If you live in Hanalei, not much, despite an ever-increasing number of vacation rentals pushing out long-time residents. Do you call Kekaha home? Not much political action there either, aside from trying to expand the landfill before it overflows.

No, most meaningful measures passed by the seven-member legislative body seem targeted at issues affecting Lihu‘e and Kapa‘a. Coincidentally, or not, this is where most of our local lawmakers reside.

The current council makeup — two members are from Lihu‘e, three from Kapa‘a, one from Princeville and one from Koloa — reflects the absence of real representation. The previous council lacked representation from Puhi to Polihale.

Our at-large election system fails to ensure each moku, or district, has a voice on the council floor. On an island where the ‘aina rules supreme, this constitutes a critical deficiency in how we govern.

The top seven vote-getters fill the seats. You could campaign real hard just in Kapa‘a, our most populous town, and win a slot. Try doing that in Ha‘ena, Anahola or even Waimea.

Over the next two years, assuming you’re interested in another term, you better push some bills through that cater to your constituency. There’s no motivation to take a serious look at issues outside your voter base.

As such, the less populated towns and remote ecosystems within county jurisdiction fall off the radar.

“With elections by district, council members will come from all over the island and be elected directly by their neighbors,” an Eastside resident said last year during an aborted campaign to put a charter amendment on the ballot.

The moku system makes sense for logistical and accountability reasons too. Council members can meet more frequently with their direct constituents, carrying their voices, concerns and priorities to meetings when decisions are made.

Campaign costs would also decrease because candidates would no longer have to mount an islandwide effort.

Governing based on the land will naturally lead toward sound land management policies. Hawaiians developed the ahupua‘a system which served as the basic building block of their resource administration — proving successful for centuries. The moku was built up from the watersheds until it formed a natural region of the island.

A return to living and acting locally will help Kaua‘i address the problems of the future, from climate change to non-renewable resource depletion.

Requiring one member from the Halele‘a ahupua‘a, one from Ko‘olau, one from Puna, one from Kona and one from Mana would be a reasonable place to start as far as where to draw the lines. Those five seats, rounded out with two at-large members, seems a fair compromise.

There is a reason residents in other counties in the state — not to mention the myriad cities, villages and townships nationwide — have opted to use a district representation system.

As the U.S. Supreme Court found in Thornburg v. Gingles in 1986, at-large elections often present an unconstitutional dilution of minority vote strength. Let’s eliminate that possibility here.

Imagine if the U.S. Senate was elected by a national popular vote? The East and West coasts would dominate, making decisions on a daily basis that only benefit their constituencies. Hawai‘i, Alaska, the Midwest… silenced.

Instead of it being a downfall that council members only stay focused on the area where they live, it would be their imperative. We can’t really blame the council members who have to work within this flawed system. But we can ask that they consider fixing it.

We need a system that encourages personal campaigning and direct attention to neighborhood concerns, allows new candidates to enter the political arena more easily and lowers the cost of campaigning.

Nathan Eagle, news editor, can be reached at neagle@kauaipubco.com.