After 8 years of being led by Derek S.K. Kawakami, who is term-limited, voters of Kauaʻi County selected a new mayor.
In Tuesday’s general election, Mel Rapozo had received 10,859 votes (56.2%) as of the state elections office second printout of results, likely headed to the mayor’s post. He was leading the race against his friend and fellow Kauaʻi County Council member Bernard Carvalho, who had received 7,325 votes (37.9%).
In the August nonpartisan primary, Rapozo led the six candidates with 7,580 votes (40.6%) in the second printout, followed by Carvalho with 5,720 votes (30.6%).
Rapozoʻs ʻOhana and his supporters gathered at the Kauaʻi Veterans Museum in Līhuʻe to celebrate the victory.
“Iʻm so happy, so excited,” Mayor Rapozo said to Kauaʻi Now.
“We worked hard for this, and tonight I want to thank everyone behind me who worked so hard and supported us—the volunteers and my family. Tonight is for them.
“Mahalo to all the people who voted for me, and for those who didn’t vote for me, I want to thank them too because it’s important to vote, and I always tell people, you know, you need to vote whether you vote for me or not, you gotta vote.”
Carvalho and his supporters gathered at the Kauaʻi War Memorial Convention Hall.
“I’m feeling thankful. I’m feeling ready to be with my family and my grandchildren. I still have hope for myself. But at the same time, I, you know, I really wanted to serve, continue to serve.
I was ready to serve the people,” he said.
ʻTo all of my supporters, oh my God,” said Carvalho. “My leadership team members gave their hearts and souls and their personal time from their own families to be at meetings, to gather, to hold signs, to reach out- I mean all of that. I’m so thankful.
“I don’t know what else to say, but thank you, love, love them so much, to me, whether win or lose or whatever, it doesn’t matter because it’s not about that, It’s about people being there for you, for presence and believing in your style of leadership and thatʻs what our team members did, and that to me was the biggest part, the biggest blessing.”
As Kauaʻis next mayor, Rapozo will inherit responsibility for a county facing issues including housing affordability, infrastructure, traffic, development, and preservation of Kauaʻi’s natural resources.
By 6:40 p.m. Tuesday, election officials in Līhuʻe told Kauaʻi Now that 842 people had voted in person.
Work, the Wailua Bridge lane closure, the sudden closure of the Kapaʻa gas station, and the rain did not deter Tess Schleihs, the last voter on the Garden Island.
“I was praying, and I was hoping that would just make it in time, and I did,” she said to Kauaʻi Now.
She explained that, given all the disruptions and the issues the county is currently facing, voting for her tonight was “more important than Christmas,” she said.
“To me, because of what’s going on with the Trump administration and what’s going on across the mainland, I was so concerned about how it would affect Hawaiʻi.”
Schleihs added that she supported Mel Rapozo for mayor.
“I made the mistake, and I’ll be honest, of not voting when I had the opportunity in the past because I thought the people in our government would take care of it, from now on I will be involved.
“I will no longer be out of sight. I neglected that right to vote, and therefore I’m suffering because of the consequences, along with a whole bunch of other Americans.”
Kawakami in the August primary won the lieutenant governor’s spot on incumbent Hawaiʻi Gov.
Josh Green’s Democratic bid for re-election. He and Green had a significant lead by the second state results printout, with 14,378 votes (74.4%) against Republican challengers Gary Cordery, seeking the governor’s post, and Daniel Anthony for lieutenant governor, whose ticket had just 4,377 votes (22.7%).
NOTE: Blank and over votes were not yet factored into the unofficial state results included in this story and reported in the second printout.
