To be a candidate for the Kaua‘i County Council you must be a resident and a “qualified voter” for two years preceding the election.
On the surface, this seems like a reasonable requirement. However, it’s the most-restrictive in the state, and disenfranchises over 30% of Kaua‘i residents.
You could have been born and raised on Kaua‘i, perhaps a recent graduate or a veteran returning home, who has not yet registered to vote, and you would be declared ineligible.
However, you could move to Honolulu and run for election to the council there tomorrow. You could also possibly run for election to be a state senator or representative, or even a member of the U.S. Congress, none of which have a minimum residency requirement.
But unless you’ve been registered to vote on Kaua‘i for two years prior to being elected, you cannot run to become a member of the council. At least that’s what it looks like at first glance. Upon a second and third glance, the aforementioned conclusion becomes a bit muddy.
According to the state Office of Elections, the qualifications needed are as follows:
• Kaua‘i County Council: Qualified voter of Kaua‘i County at least two years prior to election;
• City and County of Honolulu: Resident and registered voter of the appropriate council district;
• Hawai‘i County Council: Resident and registered voter of the council district at least 90 days prior to primary election, qualified voter of Hawai‘i County for a least one year prior to election;
• Maui County Council: Resident in the area of the county from which the person seeks to be elected for a period of one year before filing, qualified voter of Maui County.
It’s my understanding that the Office of Elections, for purposes of evaluating the qualification of new candidates for the Kaua‘i County Council, interprets the words “qualified” and “registered” as essentially synonyms. I’m not aware if this has ever been challenged in court.
Notice if you will that “qualified voter” is used in relation to Kaua‘i’s requirement. For Honolulu it’s “resident and registered voter” and for Maui it’s “resident and qualified voter.”
Hawai‘i County uses both “registered voter” and “qualified voter,” implying that they have different meanings.
So, is there a difference between a qualified voter and a registered voter?
Yes, we are digging down into the weeds, but in policymaking the weeds are important, and often where the rubber meets the road.
Being “registered to vote” seems pretty clear. You have filled out a form and have the paper to prove it. Being “qualified to vote,” however, could be interpreted as being of age and being a resident, thus qualified to be a voter but not having yet registered.
To further confuse things, the actual Kaua‘i County Charter Section 3.04. does not use the words “registered voter” or “qualified voter,” but rather says, “To be eligible for the council, a person must be a citizen of the United States and must have been a duly qualified elector of the county for at least two years immediately preceding his election or appointment.”
Why the Office of Elections chooses to use language different from that contained within the charter I do not know.
Oxford defines the word “elector” as “a person who has the right to vote in an election.”
It would seem that all adult residents of Kaua‘i have the right to vote in our elections.
Yes, words matter. In this case, the prevailing interpretation of the words would appear to prevent otherwise-qualified residents from running and serving on the Kaua‘i County Council.
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Gary Hooser is the former vice-chair of the Democratic Party of Hawai‘i, and served eight years in the state Senate, where he was majority leader. He also served for eight years on the Kaua‘i County Council, and was the former director of the state Office of Environmental Quality Control. He serves in a volunteer capacity as board president of the Hawai‘i Alliance for Progressive Action and is executive director of the Pono Hawai‘i Initiative.
Gary, the registered voters, who cast a vote, on the Island of Kauai determined the two year requirement. Yes, you have a right to bring up the issue, if it is one on Kauai, and have the registered voters decide. For me, keep the two years, it works.
A two year residency is not overly restrictive. It would give people a chance to appreciate problems and solutions unique to our island. We already have a self proclaimed vaccine expert on our county council who is dissuading North Shore residents from getting vaccinations (not just COVID) while in line to get tested. If anything, our qualifications should be more restrictive. Our County Council members should keep their public comments to topics related to the purview their office.
Dr. Arnie, would you please layout for me why a person should have no concern about what gets injected into their or their Children’s body. When I buy certain food at the store I check the ingredients, personally I try to stay away from highly processed foods. My child has a back reaction from
Gluten and dairy, bad inflammatory response if she eats it. Now a good portion of her classmates have no issue with gluten however some can’t eat nuts and some allergic to shellfish. So based on the same
Logic without knowing any past medical history of someone would you still recommend every man, woman and child be vaccinated with this covid vaccine and have no recourse if you or child is debilitated from an unforeseen side effects?
Booo, 2 years. Whats next, you need an ID to run for council?
Council candidates should also be required to pay their GE taxes. This requirement could have prevented the riff-raff from holding council seats.
Lol, as if the Kauai County Council elections are anything more than a name-recognition game…
Gary, apparently, you fail to understand that the 2 year requirement is for the good of Kauai. How can someone that just moves here, know anything about the island, or it’s history?
Hooser, you officially have too much down time. You wrote an entire article on this? Two year requirement isn’t too much for me. I think we have idiots in the council right now. LET ME GUESS… you are trying to get some new found “haole” friends into office aren’t you. Maybe a nice hobby would help you let out some of that energy, or join the old ones at McDonalds in the morning (do they still do that? ) anyways. Go find something to do that doesn’t involve trying to tell everyone on this island what to do.
Thanks for pointing out the ambiguity in the candidacy requirements on Kauai, and the differences in requirement for the other islands. Words do matter, particularly when they purport to set policy or law. Clarity would help. As far as the two year residency immediately preceding running, that makes sense to me and worth clarifying.