LIHU‘E — About 17% of registered Kaua‘i voters have already returned their ballots for the Prosecuting Attorney Special Primary Election.
The election, sparked by the early resignation of Justin Kollar, is between former county prosecuting attorney Shaylene Iseri and Acting Procesector Rebecca Like, and is scheduled for Dec. 18.
About 42,243 ballots were mailed out to 47,513 registered voters. And as of last Friday, 8,158 have been returned.
No votes have been processed or scanned, and won’t be until early next week.
“Like we did in the 2020 elections, we will begin processing ballots prior to election day, but of course not generate any results until after 7 p.m. on election day, Dec. 18,” Election Administrator Lyndon Yoshioka said Monday.
While this is an entirely mail-in election, Monday, the county’s Voter Service Center opened in the basement of the Historic County Annex Building in Lihu‘e on Rice Street.
The center will be open the next two weeks on Monday through Saturday from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m., up until election day. On Dec. 18, the center will be open from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m.
“Everything is by mail, we have the Voter Service Center open for individuals who still wish to register to vote as well as to provide accessible voting equipment for individuals who need that,” Yoshioka said.
The VSC offers accessible in-person voting, same-day registration and serves as a mail ballot collection site, no appointment is necessary.
Accessible in-person voting and same-day registration services are only for voters who have not yet returned a voted mail ballot or for unregistered individuals wishing to register and vote.
The special election, which is costing taxpayers about $475,000, is also the subject of debate on whether changes should be made to the County Charter to prevent similar situations in the future.
For additional information, please contact the Elections Division of the Office of the County Clerk at (808) 241-4800.
