Richard T. Bissen Jr.

2026 Maui Mayor · Elected November 2022 · Wailuku, HI

Background

• Retired, award-winning judge and prosecutor
• Community service spanning three decades
• Elected Mayor by an overwhelming majority in November 2022, took office January 1, 2023

Maui Roots

• "For me, those roots stretch from Pāʻia to Piʻihana — from Keʻane to Kahakuloa"
• Grew up planting kalo with his father in the family loʻi
• "That's where I learned village values — and what it means to work in the lepo"

Priorities

• Kamaʻāina Housing
• Recovery — rebuilding Lahaina and communities affected by the 2023 wildfires
• Well-Being
• Cultural and Natural Resources
• Economic Development and Diversification
• "Affordability is the foundation of everything we do"
• "Water is a public trust, and it must be managed in the best interest of our people"

Public Service

• Mayor of Maui County (January 2023–present)
• Secured $1.6 billion in federal disaster relief funding
• Launched the House Maui housing framework
• Established the Lahaina Advisory Team and Office of Recovery
• Held over 100 community meetings in wildfire-affected areas
• Introduced Bill 9 (vacation rental conversions to long-term housing)
• Created the Office of Economic Development
• Revived the Maui County Fair after a six-year hiatus
• Initiated Holomua Kākou community outreach program