Meet the Candidate: Charmaine Tavares

Current mayor discusses re-election.

Mayor Charmaine Tavares knows Molokai, having held a Maui County Council seat for 10 years prior to being elected mayor three years ago. She visited the Friendly Isle two weeks ago to talk story with residents, and stopped by the Dispatch to discuss Maui’s economy, Molokai’s agriculture and alternative energy.

Molokai Dispatch (MD): How’s your campaign going?

Charmaine Tavares (CT): It’s going. It’s very busy because just running the county as the current mayor keeps me busy and now the forums and the panels and the invitations for coffee hours to come talk to this group and that group. I love meeting with those groups because that’s how I get a feel for what the community is thinking or what segments of the community are thinking, and I get a better picture of how people feel we’re doing economically or their personal lives or their community lives.

MD: What concerns have voters been talking to you about?

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The Hawaii state primaries are on Sept. 18.