About House District 17 — North & East Kauaʻi (Anahola / Kīlauea / Hanalei)
House District 17 is the most geographically sprawling of Kauaʻi's state house seats, sweeping from the agricultural flatlands of Anahola and Kīlauea up through the Hanalei valley and the north shore all the way to the Nāpali coast. The seat is held by incumbent Rep. Daynette (Dee) Morikawa, who has represented north and east Kauaʻi since 2009 and is seeking another term in 2026. She faces two challengers confirmed on the August primary ballot: Republican Misty Cluett (mistycluett.com) and Democrat Chad K. Schimmelfennig. Morikawa's tenure has been anchored in the House Finance and Agriculture committees, where she has worked to secure neighbor-island infrastructure appropriations and back agricultural land protection — both perennial priorities for a district where farming families, rural homesteaders, and north-shore residents coexist with one of the most visited coastlines in the state. Key issues for the district include short-term rental regulation and its effect on long-term housing availability in communities like Hanalei and Princeville; state investment in rural roads and flood-resilience infrastructure following recurring weather damage along the northern coastline; and the future of agricultural lands in the Hanalei watershed.
Primary date: 2026-08-08
Party: Democratic · Backing: Establishment
Platform: HD17 (Wailua/Kapaʻa, Kauaʻi) Democratic candidate; no campaign website or platform found as of May 2026.
- Chad K. Schimmelfennig filed as a Democratic candidate for STATE REPRESENTATIVE, DIST 17 in 2026 per the Hawaiʻi Office of Elections at elections.hawaii.gov.
- No campaign website was listed in the 2026 Office of Elections filing database at elections.hawaii.gov for this candidate as of May 2026.
- No policy positions or platform statements for this candidate were identified in Civil Beat archives (civilbeat.org) as of May 2026; the 2026 primary voter guide had not been published at that date (primary: August 8, 2026).
Editorial summary: No published campaign platform statements were identified for SCHIMMELFENNIG, Chad K. as of the May 2026 review. Voters should monitor civilbeat.org as the August 8, 2026 primary approaches.
Key issues: No published platform statements found, Housing affordability, Local infrastructure, Economic development, Community services
Profile last reviewed: 2026-06-03