Mayor Carvalho began his career with the county in 1985 as a recreation leader for the Department of Public Works and worked his way up over the next 17 years. During that time, he also held jobs as a customer service representative and emcee of a popular luau in Wailua.

In 2002, he was appointed director of the Offices of Community Assistance, and in 2007, he was named director of the newly established Department of Parks and Recreation.

When Mayor Bryan Baptiste passed away in June 2008, a special election was held for the remaining two years of his term. Mayor Carvalho won the election and served the last two years of Mayor Baptiste’s term.  He was then re-elected in 2010 for a full, four-year term with an overwhelming 78% of the vote. In 2014, he was re-elected for his second and final four-year term.

Mayor Carvalho boasts an outstanding football career at Kapa‘a High School, and was offered a full athletic scholarship at the University of Hawai‘i at Mānoa. In 1983, he graduated with a bachelor’s of arts degree in communications and public relations from UH-Mānoa.

The Mayor then embarked on a professional football career with the Miami Dolphins. Upon his return to Kauai, Mayor Carvalho immersed himself in many community efforts. Among the leadership roles he held were: president of the Kapa‘a High School Parent Teacher Association, boardmember of Hale Ho‘omalu Family Center; and member of the Kawaihau District Leadership (anti-drug) Coalition. He also served as a member of the Hawai‘i State Fatherhood Commission.

The Mayor is the recipient of an HMSA Ola Pono award for community service, and his family was named Eastside Family of the Year by the Interfaith Council of Kaua‘i.

Mayor Carvalho and his wife Regina “Gina” Godinez Carvalho have three children – Bronson, Brennen and Brittney and two grandchildren Welina and Nahoa.