Challenger and incumbent win two seats on the Hawaii County Council

An incoming West Hawaii County Council member is hoping to boost support for Kohala after one of the only election upsets on the Big Island Tuesday.

Councilwoman Cindy Evans was ousted Tuesday by opponent James Hustace. Hustace, who has served as president of the Waimea Community Association for the past four years, received 58% of the vote, beating Evans’ 42%.

After the swearing-in ceremony on Dec. 2, Hustace will represent Council District 9, which includes Kohala and parts of Waimea.

Hustace told the Tribune-Herald on Wednesday that his opponent ran a good race, but said voters in his district are “looking for leaders who will listen to the needs of the community.”

“The district has a lot of different communities with different concerns,” Hustace said. “In places like Waikoloa, you have people who are concerned about the roads outside of town in case of a fire. And then people in Waimea are concerned about water… that has to be at the forefront of our discussions, not only to support housing, but also agricultural production.”

At the same time, Hustace said, District 9 residents are also concerned about the cultural and historical preservation of the many wahi pana in West and North Hawaii.

Hustace said his first priorities after taking the seat will be building professional relationships with his fellow council members and the county’s new department heads. He will need that support, he said, to spend provincial resources on large-scale infrastructure projects in the area, including cesspool conversions and new roads for the rural district.

Evans was gracious in defeat, saying Hustace ran “a very traditional, tough race.” She said if she had been elected, her priorities for the district would also have included rebuilding cesspools and roads, as well as agriculture and developing affordable workforce housing.

After her resignation, Evans said, she will continue her volunteer work in the field of domestic violence and support the nonprofit Malama Pono Kohala as she strives to secure better pathways for her district as a voter.

On the other side of the island, the only other Council seat up for debate on Tuesday remained with the incumbent party.

Puna Council member Matt Kaneali’i-Kleinfelder defeated challenger Ikaika Rodenhurst with 57% of the vote.

Kaneali’i-Kleinfelder said he was humbled by his constituents’ confidence in him, saying the district has not had a Council member in office for four consecutive terms in a long time — which is the limit.

“I hope it’s because of what we’ve done,” Kaneali’i-Kleinfelder said, touting efforts to improve the county’s roads, such as shoulder repairs and repaving on the Stainback Highway to ease traffic congestion.

When his final term begins in December, Kaneali’i-Kleinfelder hopes to ensure the province can focus on completing long-term projects for Puna, such as a new public transportation hub in Pahoa and a study of possible locations for a new alternate route . from the area.

Rodenhurst, who briefly served as the county’s public works director from 2021 to 2022, said he will continue to work in the private sector, but as a citizen he will do whatever he can to help improve the county’s building permit process.

The remaining seven seats on the County Council were decided in the primaries.