LIHUE — Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump swept Kauai County Tuesday night. A total of 963 people cast votes in the Republican caucus at five polling locations around the island. Trump received 380 votes, 42.7 percent, to claim first place,
LIHUE — Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump swept Kauai County Tuesday night.
A total of 963 people cast votes in the Republican caucus at five polling locations around the island.
Trump received 380 votes, 42.7 percent, to claim first place, according to results released form the Republican Party of Kauai. U.S. Sen. Ted Cruz was second with 317 votes, 35.6 percent. Ohio Gov. John Kasich received 102 votes, 11.4 percent and U.S. Sen. Marco Rubio received 80 votes, 9 percent.
According to the results, Trump won in Kapaa, Princeville, Lihue and Waimea. Cruz took Kalaheo.
Trump also won Hawaii, with 5,677 votes, or 42.4 percent. Cruz came in second with 4,379 votes, 33 percent. Florida Sen. Marco Rubio came in third with 13 percent of the vote, and Ohio Gov. John Kasich came in fourth with 11 percent.
There are more than 2,000 provisional votes to be counted this week, and the Hawaii Republican Party will allocate delegates after that count is completed.
More than 15,000 voters turned out, surpassing the 10,000 that turned out in the 2012 Republican presidential caucus.
Collin Moore, a political science professor at the University of Hawaii at Manoa, said Trump’s win in the Aloha State is noteworthy.
“Because Hawaii is so diverse, it’s symbolic that a candidate who is accused of being racist to win the state,” he said Wednesday.
Moore credits Trump’s victory to his strong national media coverage.
“None of the candidates have a strong campaign presence in Hawaii,” he said. “It’s Trump’s national attention that managed to get his victory here.”
Trump’s continued success in the political arena “made a fool of the political scientists,” he added.
“Nobody thought he would do so well,” he said.
Moore contributes Trump’s victories to two factors: a steady and loyal following and possible embarrassment.
“There’s a ceiling to his support, that is usually capped at 38 percent,” he said. “The people who support him are diehards, and his popularity is stable.”
But with strong support comes strong opposition. And with Trump, it’s one or the other, Moore said.
“Those who don’t like him, hate him,” he said.
Because of that dichotomy, it’s hard for Trump to gain supporters, he said.
Moore also speculates people who support Trump may be embarrassed to publicly announce it.
“People are not willing to support him, but they clearly are in the caucuses,” he said.
Moving forward, Moore expects the Republican party to vote for the other candidates to keep Trump from getting the presidential nomination.
“I think the anti-Trump side will divide their votes, so he doesn’t achieve the delegate vote,” he said.
The Princeville, Kapaa, Lihue, Kalaheo and Waimea neighborhood centers were the sites of the Republican presidential caucuses Tuesday night.
The votes for each of the four candidates were:
• Princeville: Trump, 77; Kasich, 32; Cruz, 27; Rubio, 20
• Kapaa: Trump, 97; Cruz, 90; Rubio, 21; Kasich, 15
• Lihue: Trump, 83; Cruz, 76; Kasich, 17; Rubio, 10
• Kalaheo: Cruz, 107; Trump, 92; Kasich, 32; Rubio, 24
• Waimea: Trump, 31; Cruz, 17; Kasich, 6; Rubio, 5
