Dr. Kimo Alameda headed toward defeat of incumbent Mitch Roth for Hawaiʻi Island mayor

Promising change and transparency, Dr. Kimo Alameda’s message appears to have resonated with voters who put him ahead of incumbent Mitch Roth for Hawaiʻi Island mayor with 51.2% of the vote after the second printout at 12:24 a.m. on Wednesday.

Alameda received 35,577 votes to Rothʻs 30,717 ( 44.2%), according to the Hawaiʻi election printout at 11:40 p.m. Tuesday, which did not change after the second printout.

There also were 3,183 ballots with blank votes for mayor and 47 over votes.

Alameda, 54, spent 15 years at the state Department of Health as a mental health specialist and later as an administrator.  In 2019, Alameda became the CEO of Bay Clinic Health Center and helped manage its merger during the pandemic to form the new Hawaii Island Community Health Center, or HICHC.

Most recently, Alameda was head of the Hawaii Island Fentanyl Task Force when he decided to run for mayor. 

According to Alameda, Roth’s administration has been slow to address issues regarding public safety, mental health and affordable housing.

Roth, 59, was elected mayor in 2020 and brought years of public service and administrative experience to the job stemming from his long career as a Hawai’i County prosecuting attorney.

Since becoming mayor, Roth has made his priorities clear as he works toward making Hawai’i County a sustainable place where families can afford to stay with ample housing and job opportunities. 

It was a long night as both candidates waited for the results.

To help pass the time during his campaign party, Roth led a few games with keiki and a raffle for his supporters.

“Itʻs definitely hard to not have some results especially since it involves my job,” said Alexey Katko, who works in the mayorʻs office. “I am thankful for the time I have spent working here but I really hope to see if I will get more time. Any results would help me get more sleep tonight.”

Alameda held his campaign party at Nani Mau Gardens, which promised to stay open until the first results rolled in.

“One year of full on campaigning has taught me a lot, mostly about bringing people together,” Alameda said. “I had to up my game and get so many volunteers and supporters on board to see the possibilities on the Big Island. I believe I did that and could do it even more so as mayor.”

Alameda said if elected mayor his administration would focus on the “almost homeless,” those kūpuna living paycheck to paycheck and the foster children aging out of the system with no place to go. He also will focus on mental health issues.

Alameda also thinks regenerative tourism is a good model for the county, but as mayor, he said he will explore attracting different types of visitors and cater toward sports and health tourism. 

As mayor, Alameda plans to communicate everything that is happening in the county through the media and have greater transparency through open budgets, public disclosures, online portals and live streaming meetings.

Alameda also promised to make change happen quickly, focus on solutions and use his experience of working in the community to bring more private and public relationships to the table.