Kauai County, Hawaii

Kauai County or Kauaʻi County (Hawaiian: Kalana o Kauaʻi), officially known as the County of Kauaʻi, is a county in the U.S. state of Hawaii. It encompasses the islands of Kauaʻi, Niʻihau, Lehua, and Kaʻula. According to the 2020 Census, the population was 73,298. The county seat is Līhuʻe.

The Kapaʻa Micropolitan Statistical Area includes all of Kauai County.

Geography

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of 1,266 square miles (3,280 km2), of which 620 square miles (1,600 km2) is land and 646 square miles (1,670 km2) (51.0%) is water. The Pacific Ocean surrounds the county.

Adjacent entities

• Honolulu County, Hawaii – southeast
• Midway Atoll – northwest

National protected areas

• Hanalei National Wildlife Refuge
• Hulēʻia National Wildlife Refuge
• Kīlauea Point National Wildlife Refuge

Communities

There are no incorporated communities in Kauai County, or in any other county of Hawaii. The county is the only form of local government in the State of Hawaii.

Census-designated places

• Anahola
• ʻEleʻele
• Hāʻena
• Hanalei
• Hanamāʻulu
• Hanapēpē
• Kalāheo
• Kalihiwai
• Kapaʻa
• Kaumakani
• Kekaha
• Kīlauea
• Kōloa
• Lāwaʻi
• Līhuʻe
• ʻŌmaʻo
• Pākalā Village
• Poʻipū
• Princeville
• Puhi
• Wailua
• Wailua Homesteads
• Waimea
• Wainiha

Other unincorporated places

• Puʻuwai
• Keālia

Demographics

2020 census

As of the 2020 census, the county had a population of 73,298. Of the residents, 21.5% were under the age of 18 and 21.2% were 65 years of age or older; the median age was 43.0 years. For every 100 females there were 97.5 males, and for every 100 females age 18 and over there were 96.2 males. 57.8% of residents lived in urban areas and 42.2% lived in rural areas.

The racial makeup of the county was 31.7% White, 0.5% Black or African American, 0.4% American Indian and Alaska Native, 28.8% Asian, 9.9% Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islander, 1.5% from some other race, and 27.3% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino residents of any race comprised 10.1% of the population.

There were 24,712 households in the county, of which 33.8% had children under the age of 18 living with them and 24.5% had a female householder with no spouse or partner present. About 21.6% of all households were made up of individuals and 11.1% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older.

There were 30,157 housing units, of which 18.1% were vacant. Among occupied housing units, 62.8% were owner-occupied and 37.2% were renter-occupied. The homeowner vacancy rate was 1.1% and the rental vacancy rate was 13.4%.

2000 census

At the 2000 census there were 58,463 people, 20,183 households, and 14,572 families in the county. The population density was 94 people per square mile (36 people/km2). There were 25,331 housing units at an average density of 41 per square mile (16/km2). The racial makeup of the county was 36.0% Asian, 29.5% White, 23.8% from two or more races, 9.1% Pacific Islander, 0.3% Black or African American, 0.4% Native American and 0.9% from other races. 8.2%. were Hispanic or Latino of any race.

Of the 20,183 households 34.0% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 53.9% were married couples living together, 12.8% had a female householder with no husband present, and 27.8% were non-families. 21.4% of households were one person and 7.7% were one person aged 65 or older. The average household size was 2.87 and the average family size was 3.34.

The age distribution was 26.4% under the age of 18, 7.1% from 18 to 24, 27.2% from 25 to 44, 25.5% from 45 to 64, and 13.8% 65 or older. The median age was 38 years. For every 100 females there were 100.10 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 97.50 males.

Economy

Top employers

According to the county's 2022 Annual Comprehensive Financial Report, the top non-government employers in the county are the following:

Education

Higher education

Kauaʻi Community College is the county's only institution of higher education. One of the ten branches of the University of Hawaiʻi system, it offers a range of 2-year degrees and is accredited by the Western Association of Schools and Colleges.

Primary and Secondary Education

Public schools in the county are operated by the Hawaiʻi State Department of Education, and the county is represented by Maggie Cox on the state's Board of Education. There are 10 elementary schools, 3 middle schools, 3 high schools, and 5 K-12 schools in the county.

High schools

• Kapaa High School
• Kauai High School
• Waimea High School

Middle schools

• Chiefess Kamakahelei Middle School
• Kapa'a Middle School
• Waimea Canyon Middle School

Elementary schools

• Alakaʻi O Kauaʻi Public Charter School
• Eleele Elementary School
• Hanalei Elementary School
• Kalaheo Elementary School
• Kapaʻa Elementary
• Kaumualii Elementary School
• Kekaha Elementary School
• Kilauea Elementary School
• Kōloa Elementary School
• Wilcox Elementary School

K-12 Schools

• Kanuikapono Public Charter School
• Kawaikini New Century Public Charter School
• Ke Kula Niʻihau O Kekaha Learning Center
• Kula Aupuni Niʻihau A Kahelelani Aloha
• Niʻihau High & Elementary

Private schools

There are four private schools in the county: Island School, Kahili Adventist School, St. Theresa's Elementary School, and ʻŌlelo Christian Academy. St. Catherine's School used to operate, but closed its doors on June 7, 2024.

Infrastructure

Transportation

Lihue Airport serves the island of Kauaʻi. Bus service is provided by The Kauaʻi Bus.

Major Highways

• Route 50
• Route 51
• Route 56
• Route 58
• Route 520
• Route 540
• Route 550
• Route 570
• Route 580
• Route 581
• Route 583

Government and politics

Kauaʻi County operates under a mayor-council form of municipal government. The Mayor of Kauaʻi, elected by the voters on a nonpartisan basis, holds executive authority for a four-year term. Meanwhile, legislative authority is vested in the seven-member County Council. Members of the County Council are elected on a nonpartisan, at-large basis to two-year terms.

United States Congress

Kauaʻi County, like the rest of Hawaii, is represented entirely by Democrats in both the United States Senate and the United States House of Representatives.

Hawaii Legislature

Hawaii Senate

Hawaii House of Representatives

Elections

Kauai County, like Hawaii in general, has traditionally been a stronghold of the Democratic Party. The county has not voted for a Republican presidential candidate since 1984, when it narrowly voted in favor of Ronald Reagan. In 2024, while it still voted majority Democratic, Kauai County cast the highest percentage for the Republican candidate of any county in the state, a distinction that has generally been held by Honolulu County; this was the first time Kauai County had done so since 1960. The island of Kauai leans Democratic overall. The island of Ni'ihau, which has a very small population, tends to vote almost entirely Republican, by far the strongest such leaning of all major Hawaiian islands.

Sister cities

Kauai County's sister cities are:

• Philippines Bangued, Philippines
• Philippines Davao City, Philippines
• Japan Ishigaki, Japan
• Japan Iwaki, Japan
• Philippines Laoag, Philippines
• Japan Moriyama, Japan
• French Polynesia Papenoo, French Polynesia
• Philippines Santa, Philippines
• Japan Suō-Ōshima, Japan
• Philippines Urdaneta, Philippines
• England Whitby, England, United Kingdom

Notes

External links

22°04′N 159°39′W/22.067°N 159.650°W/ 22.067; -159.650