LIHUE — Debralynn DeSilva Carveiro may not have a lot of degrees on paper, but the Hanapepe resident said she makes up for it through life experiences gleaned by raising a family and running her home-based “adult novelty items” business.
LIHUE — Debralynn DeSilva Carveiro may not have a lot of degrees on paper, but the Hanapepe resident said she makes up for it through life experiences gleaned by raising a family and running her home-based “adult novelty items” business.
“Some of my acquaintances have told me that I have a lot of good views and … a lot of experience in life choices,” said DeSilva Carveiro, who is known by some as “Mizdebz.” “You learn a lot more things on the street than you would learn in a classroom.”
And that is what the mother of six children and grandmother of 12 said she brings to the table in her run for mayor in this year’s election — her second run for a county office.
“My philosophy is that it takes a village to raise a child, so it does take a village to manage the whole island,” DeSilva Carveiro said. “Basically, there’s certain things that could be done differently compared to the way it’s being handled now.”
DeSilva Carveiro, who filed her nomination papers on March 6, previously ran for a Kauai County Council seat in 2010.
She placed last in that year’s primary election after receiving 925 of the 36,402 votes cast for the 17 County Council candidates.
“At the end of the day, I don’t like to play politics,” DeSilva Carveiro said. “I hate the notion of it’s who you know that gets you ahead in life. Basically, everybody should be judged by their own character and what they bring to the table.”
As a mayoral candidate, DeSilva Carveiro said she wants to focus on developing more jobs on Kauai and using on-island resources to supply those jobs. Another area that must be addressed, she said, is providing more protections to the island’s keiki and kupuna, who are vulnerable to personal crimes.
“I just want to get out there and let everybody know that it pays to have different choices and opinions, but in the long run, we need to come together and work toward balanced solutions that are better for everyone — it’s not about you or me, it’s about us,” DeSilva Carveiro said.
Mayor Bernard Carvalho Jr., who was elected into office in 2008, said he will seek re-election for his second full-term in office. As of Tuesday, Carvalho has not filed his nomination papers.
The mayor’s annual salary, last set in 2008, is $114,490. All seven County Council seats are also up for re-election.
The deadline for candidates to file their nomination papers with the Office of the County Clerk’s Election Division is June 3.
• Darin Moriki, county government reporter, can be reached at 245-0428 or dmoriki@thegardenisland.com.
