CAMPAIGN BUDGET (for transparency)

  • $4,073.29 --- Design, printing, and postage for 4,033 mailers (8.5" x 11") sent directly to Rowland Heights, Diamond Bar, and Walnut residents
  • $1,070.00 -- Digital ads on Facebook (estimated 71,333 impressions total)
  • $755.00 --- Printing of 151 yard signs (18" x 24")
  • $490.09 --- Printing and shipping for 6,000 doorhangers (8.5" x 3.5")
  • $400.00 --- Cost for Candidate Statement to get printed in Official LA County Sample Ballot (400 words)
  • $163.89 --- Printing for 3,000 stickers to place on California Democratic Party doorhangers (1500 4" x 10" and 1500 4" x 4")

WHY I'M RUNNING 

Did you know that as many as 87% of water board elections are cancelled because no one runs other than the incumbent? I wasn't sure if now was the right time for me to run or if I held the right qualifications, but I sure as hell know I can do a better job than the current appointed incumbent: a 70-year-old Republican retired substitute elementary school teacher who is a Tucker Carlson sympathizer, believes that Nancy Pelosi should be put on trial, and thinks that the "whole agenda" of Black Lives Matter is "racism."

I’m running for the Walnut Valley Water District Board of Directors to ensure that future generations to come will have access to clean drinking water that comes from sustainable practices that keep climate change in mind. As a research scientist, I understand the importance of evidence-based decision making and will bring that approach to the WVWD Board of Directors. 

TOP ISSUES: COVID-19, SUSTAINABILITY, AND CLIMATE CHANGE 

COVID-19 has completely upended our lives and Rowland Heights families are struggling. No family should have to choose between putting food on the table and paying their water bill. I will advocate for expanding the suspension of water shutoffs related to nonpayment, extending the temporary suspension of late fees/penalties, and increasing the maximum payment extension a ratepayer can request (currently only 2 weeks).

BIOGRAPHY 

Born and raised in Rowland Heights, Kevin is a proud International Baccalaureate (I.B.) graduate of John A. Rowland High School, one of the two high schools in the Walnut Valley Water District (WVWD), Division IV. He graduated from the University of California, Berkeley with a double major in Physics and Astrophysics. Kevin holds a Master’s degree in Astronomy from the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA), and is currently a Ph.D. Candidate in Astronomy and Astrophysics at UCLA. He has had the privilege of teaching in the Earth Science Department at Santa Monica College and the Natural Sciences Division at El Camino College.

YOUR CONTRIBUTION

The toughest part of running in a downballot race is name recognition. This November, tens of thousands of Rowland Heights residents will come out to vote for Joe Biden or Donald Trump, but only a small fraction of them will make it all the way to the bottom of the ticket where my name is. Your contribution will directly go towards helping me send out mailers to the Democratic- and progressive-leaning households out of the 10,000 total households. Please consider donating to my campaign today to help me communicate my platform to the district.

Show your support for this campaign by endorsing it and sharing why!

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  • endorsed

    “I know Kevin has the compassion to serve our community and the knowledge to help preserve our supply of clean drinking water, because I went to high school with him, and I know he has an incredibly brilliant mind! And he will put it to good use, along with his heart, in serving on the Walnut Valley Water District Board.”

  • endorsed

    “I studied at UC Berkeley with Kevin, and he is both exceedingly smart and kind. He has a genuine concern for those around him, and will serve his community well!”

  • endorsed

    “He has always been an activist and commits to delivering the best to every community he is involved in.”

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November 9, 2020

Thank You

We did it!

Thank you all so much for your unwavering support these past few months. I will never forget who made this victory possible—and that person is you.

You have shown that a 26-year-old can run a successful campaign from his childhood bedroom. That he could raise $7,000+ in grassroots donations. That ordinary people still have faith in our institutions.

I’d also like to thank my family for enduring this journey with me, especially my dad. From leaving door hangers on thousands of households to hammering dozens of yard signs along Colima Road, they’ve always been there by my side.

Thank you to my wonderful campaign volunteers, some of whom walked precincts in nearly 100 degree heat early this season: Chester, Cindy, Gail, Hameeda, Paul, Peter, and Tina.

However, we are still in the middle of a pandemic. The job has only just begun, and there is a lot of work to do. I look forward to getting to work for the residents of Division 4.

Please stay in touch as I embark on this 4-year journey with you all!

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/VoteKevinHayakawa/ 

Instagram: @VoteKevinHayakawa

Twitter: @kvnhykw

Read my Victory Press Release: https://kevinhayakawa.medium.com/26-year-old-community-college-professor-ousts-incumbent-water-board-director-ea8a793adb86 

LA County Election Results: https://results.lavote.net/#ye...

Paid for by Kevin Hayakawa for Walnut Valley Water Board 2020

FPPC ID# 1432178

September 6, 2020

Walnut Mayor Andrew Rodriguez has endorsed our campaign!

I'm proud to announce that former Mayor and current Walnut City Councilmember Andrew Rodriguez has endorsed our campaign! It’s wonderful to have a the trust and support of one of our top local elected leaders.

Andrew is running to represent Rowland Heights, Walnut, Diamond Bar, and surrounding communities in the California State Assembly, and I look forward to working with him on state and local water issues once he is elected. You can follow his campaign here: Andrew Rodriguez for Assembly 2020.

You can donate to our people-powered campaign here. Every $5 helps me reach 23 households in Rowland Heights / Diamond Bar.
https://www.crowdpac.com/c/kev...

Donate $5

September 6, 2020

We got a shoutout from the local teachers union, Association of Rowland Educators!

Thank you so much for the shoutout, Association of Rowland Educators (ARE)! What an appropriate feature this Labor Day weekend, when we celebrate the American worker, the labor movement, and labor unions like ARE. As a proud, dues-paying union member myself of UAW Local 2865, UC Student-Workers Union, which represents 19,000+ academic student employees across the University of California system, I understand the importance of unions for securing living wages and benefits for middle class workers. I'm looking forward to working with local teachers and administrators on the water needs of the Rowland Unified School District.

How many candidates for elected office can say they have the support of their former high school Government / Economics teacher, their IB Physics teacher, their Academic Decathlon coach and AP U.S. History teacher, and their Link Crew advisor and English 11 Honors teacher? I'm grateful that I can. Go Raiders!

You can donate to our people-powered campaign here. Every $5 helps me reach 23 households in Rowland Heights / Diamond Bar. https://www.crowdpac.com/c/kevinforwaterboard

Donate $5

September 4, 2020

We've been recommended for the California Democratic Party endorsement by the LACDP AD55 Delegation!

I'm thrilled to announce that I've been recommended for endorsement by the Los Angeles County Democratic Party (LACDP) Assembly District 55 (AD55) Delegation! It was a very challenging interview, but I appreciate the opportunity to share my vision for COVID-19 relief, how I would work across the aisle with 4 Republican board members, and my plan to increase Democratic turnout in Rowland Heights and Diamond Bar among AAPIs and young people in our competitive federal and state races: Gil Cisneros for Congress (D-CA39), Josh Newman (D-Senate District 29), and Andrew Rodriguez for Assembly 2020 (D-Assembly District 55).

This endorsement recommendation will be presented at the next virtual LACDP Monthly Meeting for consideration on September 8. If all goes well, since we are a local/municipal race, the LACDP endorsement will actually become the endorsement of the entire California Democratic Party!

You can donate to our people-powered campaign here. Every $5 helps me reach 23 households in Rowland Heights / Diamond Bar. https://www.crowdpac.com/c/kevinforwaterboard

Donate $5

September 4, 2020

We've been endorsed by 314 Action Fund!

I'm excited to announce that I've been endorsed by 314 Action, an organization dedicated to electing scientists who will use evidence and facts to fight climate change. As a UCLA astronomy graduate student researcher and Moorpark College physics professor, I understand the importance of evidence-based decision making. Voters not only trust STEM professionals to respond to the coronavirus pandemic, they are more trusted than any other profession to handle the greatest issues facing the U.S. right now. I'm proud to join their slate of candidates including U.S. Senate candidates Captain Mark Kelly (D-AZ), John W. Hickenlooper (D-CO), and Barbara Bollier (D-KS).

You can donate to our people-powered campaign here. Every $5 helps me reach 23 households in Rowland Heights / Diamond Bar. https://www.crowdpac.com/c/kevinforwaterboard

Donate $5

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