Kelly King

Kelly King has announced her candidacy for Maui County Council, hoping to represent the South Maui seat she previously held for six years.

In a campaign announcement, King said she is running a campaign focused on transparency, responsible governance and putting local residents at the center of decision-making.

“Our community deserves a government that listens, responds and acts in the best interest of its people,” King said in a statement. “This campaign is about restoring trust and ensuring that decisions are made for the people — not driven by outside interests or short-term gain.”

King was elected to County Council in 2016, and re-elected in 2018 and 2020, each time representing the South Maui seat.

The current South Maui council member, Tom Cook, won election in 2022, and he narrowly defeated King in his bid for re-election in 2024. The final vote in the November 2024 election came out with Cook ahead by 97 votes out of more than 52,000 cast. King challenged the results of the election, which were upheld by the Hawaii Supreme Court.

In the news release, King’s campaign said that during her previous tenure on the County Council, she delivered results helping create affordable housing projects for local residents, while passing legislation to protect native seabirds and sea turtles and securing funding for wetland restoration to address the root causes of flooding.

For more information about King’s candidacy, go to KellyKingForMaui.org.