LIHU‘E — Among the seven incumbents on the County Council, only Councilman Jay Furfaro has filed papers indicating he’ll run for re-election. Councilmembers Tim Bynum, Dickie Chang and Derek Kawakami pulled papers for re-election, and have until mid-July to file
LIHU‘E — Among the seven incumbents on the County Council, only Councilman Jay Furfaro has filed papers indicating he’ll run for re-election.
Councilmembers Tim Bynum, Dickie Chang and Derek Kawakami pulled papers for re-election, and have until mid-July to file if they intend to seek re-election.
Those not currently on the council who have filed papers to run for council include former councilmembers Mel Rapozo, Theodore Daligdig, Ron Horoshko, Kipukai Kuali‘i and Nadine Nakamura.
Those who have pulled papers for council seats but not yet filed them also include Dennis Fowler, and JoAnn Yukimura, a former mayor and councilmember.
Just six months from now the political landscape in Hawai‘i could change drastically from how it looks today, when voters will chose in the general election a whole slew of government officials across the state, from councilmembers to mayors, U.S. and state representatives and senators, and governor and lieutenant governor.
Mayor Bernard Carvalho Jr. will end his special 2-year term after winning a 2008 special election, following the sudden passing of Mayor Bryan Baptiste earlier that summer. Normally the mayor’s term lasts four years.
As of Thursday Carvalho was the only candidate who pulled papers and filed to run for mayor.
The Kaua‘i County Council was faced with hard decisions just weeks ago, reviewing the mayor’s proposed operational budget for the fiscal year beginning July 1 that calls for furloughing a majority of county employees two days a month.
Leading by example, councilmembers took a voluntary pay cut of 9.1 percent in their salaries, to match what county employees will lose in the furlough. They also gave up $150 of their $500 monthly auto/extra-expenses allowances.
Some have called the councilmembers’ actions political moves, but as of Friday only four of the seven councilmembers have showed a concrete intent to run for re-election.
Every two years voters elect a new council. There’s no limit to how many terms a councilmember can serve.
Council Chair Kaipo Asing, along with Councilmembers Lani Kawahara and Daryl Kaneshiro, had not pulled papers as of Thursday.
Asing, who has 28 years of experience as a councilmember and a brief stint in the mayor’s office between Baptiste’s death and Carvalho’s inauguration, has said in the past his current council term would be his last, but the seasoned politician has until July 20 at 4:30 p.m. to decide whether to try to extend his career for at least another two years.
Kaua‘i registered voters will also get busy choosing state representatives for three island districts, plus state and U.S. senators.
Kapa‘a’s Jeffrey Mallan pulled papers to run for the U.S. Senate seat currently held by Sen. Dan Inouye, D-Hawai‘i.
All three Kaua‘i state representatives are running for re-election, and at least two of them will face opposition.
State Rep. James Kunane “Jimmy” Tokioka, D-Wailua-Lihu‘e-Koloa has pulled papers, and will face Lawrence Fillhart and John Hoff in the run to represent Kaua‘i’s District 15.
State Rep. Roland Sagum, D-Po‘ipu-Waimea-Ni‘ihau will face Daynette Morikawa in the race to represent District 16.
State Rep. Mina Morita, D-Hanalei-Kapa‘a, as of last Thursday had no opponents to represent District 14.
Requirements to run for office
Running for office is not free, or even cheap. Some of the requirements include age limitations and U.S. citizenship for certain periods.
To run for mayor, candidates need to be more than 30 years old, and have Hawai‘i residency for at least three years. It costs $500 to file, but if the candidate shows he stayed under $73,172 in campaign expenditures, the filing fee drops to $50.
The mayor’s term lasts four years, and the salary is larger than the governor’s. The mayor receives a $122,504 salary, while the governor makes $94,780.
To run for governor, candidates also need to have at least 25 signatures of support and be more than 30 years old. They have to have Hawai‘i residency for at least five years and be a registered voter for that same period.
The lieutenant governor has the same requirements as the governor. The elected official makes $90,041 in salary.
Candidates for governor and lieutenant governor have to pay a filing fee of $750, but the fee drops to $75 if they show their campaign expenditures stayed within certain levels. Candidates for governor can only spend $1.54 million in the campaign, and candidates for lieutenant governor can only spend $863,790 in the campaign.
To run for state representative, candidates need to be Hawai‘i residents for at least three years, and also qualified voters in the appropriate house districts in which they will represent. There’s no age limit for the position.
State representatives’ terms last two years and they make $35,900 a year. The House speaker’s salary is $43,400 a year. Both positions have an allowance of $7,500 a year.
Candidates have to pay a $250 fee, but the fee drops to $25 if the candidate shows that campaign expenditures stayed inside the limits imposed on each appropriate house district. District 14 limits are $17,121, District 15 are $17,683, and District 16 are $16,416.
Candidates for the Kaua‘i County Council have no age limits, but have to be qualified, registered voters in the state for at least two years. Candidates also need at least 15 signatures of support.
Councilmembers make $56,781 in salaries, and the chair makes $63,879.
Candidates have to pay a $250 filling fee, which will drop to $25 if they show they have spent less than $51,220 in their campaigns.
U.S. senators and representatives receive $169,900 a year. Senators’ terms last six years, and the representatives have two-year terms. It costs $75 to file for federal positions, and if candidates stay within certain campaign expenditures the fee drops to $25.
Candidates for U.S. senator need to be Hawai‘i residents, U.S. citizens for no less than nine years, and at least 30 years old.
Candidates for U.S. representatives need to be Hawai‘i residents, U.S. citizens for no less than seven years, and at least 25 years old.
Financial disclosure statements
The Kaua‘i County Code, section 3-1.9, requires that candidates need to file financial disclosure statements with the county Board of Ethics within seven days of filing nomination papers.
Newly-elected officials have to file amended financial disclosures within 30 days of assuming office.
Campaign-sign regulations
The 1984 Council Resolution 173 urges all candidates on Kaua‘i to voluntarily refrain from roadside political sign-holding other than on election day, and other than by themselves individually.
According to Ordinance 499, temporary signs are allowed with certain restrictions.
A political campaign sign can identify the headquarters of a political candidate, but only one sign per candidate is allowed, and should not exceed 24 square feet.
A sign that identifies and/or provides information about a political candidate or issue to be voted upon should not exceed three square feet, nor be posted more than 45 days prior to the election date. It cannot be within the right-of-way boundary, or be visible from any federal or state highway, nor remain posted more than 10 days after the election.
Get your vote on
Aug. 19 is the last day to register to vote in the Sept. 18 primary election. You can vote early, however, from Sept. 3 to Sept. 16 at the Historic County Building Annex, 4386 Rice St. in Lihu‘e.
Sept. 11 is the last day to request absentee mail ballots for the primary election.
The general election is Nov. 2, and the last day to register is Oct. 4. The deadline to request absentee mail ballots is Oct. 26. From Oct. 19 to Oct. 30, you can vote early for the general election, also at the Historic County Building Annex.
If you haven’t yet registered to vote, go to www.kauai.gov and download an affidavit on application for voter registration. The affidavit should be mailed to the county clerk no later than 30 days prior to the election.
The county website has all the election information, including regular updates, election maps, precinct and districts boundaries, polling places, plus several other readily-available mechanisms to facilitate voting, including downloadable, absentee-ballot applications.
Kaua‘i candidates have until July 20 at 4:30 p.m. to file papers. Workers at the Office of County Clerk said there have been candidates in the past who have pulled papers in the morning and filed them with the required signatures in the afternoon.
The list of candidates, they said, will probably swell.
• Léo Azambuja, staff writer, can be reached at 245-3681 (ext. 252) or lazambuja@kauaipubco.com.
