Former Maui County Council member Kelly King is jumping back into one of South Maui's tightest political battles, filing to run again for the South Maui residency seat and setting up a rematch with incumbent Tom Cook less than a year after losing a razor-thin contest in 2024. King is casting her new campaign as an effort to restore trust in county government and put local residents at the center of county decisions, setting the stage for a hotly contested 2026 race in South Maui.
King officially filed her nomination papers this week and said she plans to anchor her campaign on transparency, fiscal oversight and housing for local residents. “Our community deserves a government that listens, responds and acts in the best interest of its people,” she said, according to Maui Now. Her filing triggers a formal rematch with Cook after last year’s narrow finish, and her campaign says the first round of community meetings will be scheduled in the coming weeks. The campaign site is KellyKingForMaui.org.
A razor-thin rematch
The 2024 contest between King and Cook ended with Cook ahead by just 97 votes, 26,423 to 26,326, a margin small enough to spark a legal challenge from King and 30 other voters. They argued that dozens of mail in ballots were improperly rejected. The Hawai‘i Supreme Court unanimously rejected that challenge and certified Cook's victory, finding that the County Clerk’s office complied with state law, according to the Hawai‘i Supreme Court ruling. With that decision closing off any legal path to overturn the result, the 2026 ballot has become the main arena for a political do-over.
King’s record and platform
King is running on a platform centered on expanding public access to county processes, tightening fiscal oversight and pushing housing solutions that she says protect land, water and agricultural resources. She points to her previous six years on the council and a record that includes environmental legislation to protect native seabirds and sea turtles and funding for wetland restoration as examples of her approach, Maui Now reported. Her environmental work and local leadership roles are also reflected in county materials and past press releases outlining her appointments and committee assignments. Maui County's site notes her efforts on climate, resilience and environmental policy during her earlier terms on the council.
Timeline and what to watch
The candidate filing window for 2026 is open through June 2, 2026, and primary ballots are scheduled for Aug. 8, 2026, with the general election set for Nov. 3, 2026, according to Maui County Votes. The County Clerk's Candidate Report is updated throughout the filing period and will show who has formally submitted nomination papers. With several weeks remaining before the filing deadline, the South Maui race is expected to sharpen as campaigns organize voters and ramp up fundraising.
Why the South Maui seat matters
The South Maui seat has often functioned as a swing vote on council decisions involving housing policy, water rights and development approvals. The outcome can shift the balance of power on the nine member council, a dynamic highlighted by election watchers in 2024. Civil Beat reported that whoever holds the South Maui seat can influence decisions on short term rental conversions, affordable housing projects and major development approvals. That context underpins why both campaigns are already framing the race as a referendum on local control and long term planning.
King's latest filing turns the South Maui council race into a rematch to watch across the district as summer and fall approach, with community meetings and candidate forums likely to follow as the campaigns compete for votes. With the candidate filing deadline in early June and the primary in August, both sides now have a clear calendar for outreach and debate. The next firm milestone is the close of filings on June 2, when the field for the primary will be locked in.
