Hawaii County races appear headed to primary runoff
Primary Election Results 2022: Hawaii County Council
Several Hawaii County Council races appear headed to a primary runoff following Saturday’s primary election.
As of 11 p.m. Saturday, with nearly all precincts reporting, two candidates in each of the following races were separated by less than 2 percentage points:
- Puna: Ashley Kierkiewicz (27.5%) and Ashley Gushiken (25.9%)
- Hilo: Sue Lee Loy (31.3%) and Aaron Chung (29.7%)
- Hamakua: Val Martin (48.3%) and Heather Kimball (28.8%)
- North Kona: Rebecca Villegas (48.4%) and Jen Ruggles (28.9%)
- South Kona: Holeka Inaba (46.9%) and Sherry Bracken (30.2%)
- Ka‘u: Maile David (46.6%) and Richard Onishi (32.2%)
- Kohala: Tim Richards (46.9%) and Kainoa Makakona (30.2%)
In order to avoid a runoff, a candidate must secure more than 50% of the vote in the primary election.
A runoff will be held on Aug. 13 for any race where no candidate secures a majority of the vote. The top two vote-getters in each race will advance to the runoff.
Hawaii County Mayoral Race
In the Hawaii County mayoral race, incumbent Mitch Roth was leading with 54.4% of the vote as of 11 p.m. Saturday. Ikaika Marzo was in second place with 30.5% of the vote. No runoff is expected in this race.
Roth, a Democrat, was first elected mayor in 2016. He is seeking a second term.
Marzo, a Republican, is a former state representative and businessman.
Other Hawaii County Races
In the Hawaii County Prosecuting Attorney race, incumbent Kelden Waltjen was leading with 53.6% of the vote as of 11 p.m. Saturday. John Kim was in second place with 32.3% of the vote. No runoff is expected in this race.
Waltjen, a Democrat, was first elected prosecuting attorney in 2016. He is seeking a second term.
Kim, a Republican, is a former deputy prosecuting attorney.
In the Hawaii County Council At-Large race, incumbent Ashley Kierkiewicz was leading with 28.9% of the vote as of 11 p.m. Saturday. Rebecca Villegas was in second place with 27.9% of the vote, and Aaron Chung was in third place with 22.6% of the vote. The top two vote-getters will advance to the runoff.
Kierkiewicz, a Democrat, was first elected to the council in 2016. She is seeking a second term.
Villegas, a Democrat, is a former state representative and businesswoman.
Chung, a Democrat, is a former council member and businessman.
Conclusion
The primary election results set the stage for the general election on Nov. 8. Voters will have the opportunity to choose their preferred candidates in all of the county, state and federal races on the ballot.
