Stop Holding Hawaii鈥檚 Primary Election On Saturday
And while we鈥檙e at it, general election day should no longer be a state holiday.
Hawaii voters this month began receiving a notice from the state Office of Elections reminding them about their voter status.
鈥淚f your voter registration is up to date, no further action is required,鈥 the office advises on the orange-colored flier.
It鈥檚 part of an effort to in advance of the 2020 elections.
For the first time, Hawaii will be voting mostly by mail, thanks to a new law this year. That鈥檚 welcome news, because it is expected to cut down on costs and just might increase voter turnout.
But here鈥檚 another thing Hawaii鈥檚 legislators should look into: changing our primary elections from Saturdays to Tuesdays.
Hawaii 鈥 red or blue, large or small 鈥 that holds a primary on Saturday (although Louisiana does use a Saturday for a runoff election). In the case of 2020, that鈥檚 just one year from now, on Aug. 8.
We could also save millions of dollars if we stop allowing general election day to be a holiday . Hawaii is where that is the case. Not even the federal government is closed on that day.
While the state鈥檚 constitution stipulates that general elections 鈥渙n the first Tuesday after the first Monday in November鈥 in all even-numbered years, special and primary elections may be held 鈥渁s provided by law.鈥
The only catch is that the primary cannot precede a general election by less than 45 days. That鈥檚 been a requirement since 2011, when moved Hawaii’s primary from the penultimate Saturday in September to the second Saturday in August.
The reason for the 45-day buffer was to ensure that Hawaii be in compliance with the federal National Defense Authorization Act that required states to mail absentee ballots to uniformed and overseas voters no later than 45 days prior to federal elections.
It doesn鈥檛 make any sense that our primary is held on Saturdays, half of our precious weekend time. The media and hundreds of state and county workers must also report to duty at that time (in many cases requiring additional compensation), as Hawaii primaries are often more consequential than general elections given the political makeup of the state.
And it doesn鈥檛 make any sense to make the first Tuesday in November in even-numbered years a holiday. A Civil Beat report in 2012 found that it costs taxpayers at least $11.5 million to close state and county government offices, schools and the University of Hawaii on Election Day. It’s undoubtedly more now, given public employee wage increases and other costs.
The reason for Saturday primaries and general election holidays appears to be because it made available public school facilities, where most precincts have historically been held. But voting by mail makes that unnecessary.
Indeed, , as the vote-by-mail law is called, struck from the books the entitlement that employees be allowed two hours on election days to do their civic duty while the polls are open. The law also extends from 6 p.m. to 7 p.m. the time the polls close.
And for those who still enjoy waiting in line to do their duty in a booth shielded by a red, white and blue curtain, Act 136 also calls for the state to set up 鈥渁 limited number of voter service centers鈥 that would be open 10 days prior to an election and through election day.
The centers will help voters with special needs, offer same-day registration and voting, and other services.
It’s getting easier to vote in Hawaii. Getting rid of Saturday primaries and general election holidays is just common sense not to mention saving the taxpayers much needed cash.
