2012 Honolulu mayoral election

The 2012 Honolulu mayoral election was held on Tuesday, November 6, 2012, to elect the Mayor of the City and County of Honolulu. Kirk Caldwell was elected mayor, beating opponent and former Hawaii governor Ben Cayetano.

The position of Mayor of Honolulu is non-partisan. A non-partisan blanket primary was held on August 11, 2012. Because no candidate received an outright majority of the vote in the primary, the top two finishers, Ben Cayetano and Kirk Caldwell, advanced to the November general election runoff. Incumbent Independent mayor Peter Carlisle was seeking a first full term in office but finished third in the primary and did not proceed to the runoff election.

Candidates

 * Kirk Caldwell, former Acting Mayor of Honolulu and Managing Director of Honolulu
 * Ben Cayetano, former Governor of Hawaii

Eliminated

 * Peter Carlisle, incumbent Mayor
 * Khistina Caldwell Dejean, candidate for mayor in 2010