If you haven’t already, you will receive your official primary election ballot soon. The Honolulu City Clerk’s office started putting them in the mail for Oahu residents on Wednesday.
Please don’t throw it away. For Hawaii, 2022 is an especially important election year. Voters will be choosing a new governor and lieutenant governor, and at least one new member of Congress. Every one of the 76 seats in the state House and Senate is up for vote. So are numerous trustee seats for the Office of Hawaiian Affairs (OHA).
Your picks in the primary election will help determine who makes it to the Nov. 8 general election. Remember the old adage, “No vote, no grumble.”
Here’s what to do:
>> Review the candidates carefully; for statewide races especially, the list of candidates is long. But you have time. Check out our online Voters Guide and visit the websites of candidates you’re interested in, if they have one. Do a Google search to see if their names pop up in news stories or in other contexts that might not be in the campaign literature. Just remember that ballots must be received — not just postmarked — by 7 p.m. Aug. 13, Primary Election day.
>> Curious about who’s giving money to your candidates? Visit the state Campaign Spending Commission’s candidate filing system to see for yourself.
>> Follow the ballot instructions carefully to make sure your vote is counted. In the primary election, you must pick a party and then vote only for candidates in that party. In most cases you can only choose one candidate per race (for OHA at-large trustee candidates, you can choose up to three). In the Nov. 8 general election, you’ll be able to choose anyone on the ballot you wish.
>> Not registered? No problem. You can submit a paper voter registration application by Aug. 3. You also can still register online or at a voter service center at any time — even on Aug. 13, Primary Election Day.
>> Won’t be home? You have until Aug. 6 to submit an absentee ballot.
>> Have other questions about voting, such as what happens if you make a mistake on the ballot? Go here, and scroll down to the Frequently Asked Questions.
All set? Fill in your ballot completely and mail it in. Or drop it off at an official drop box location or at a voter service center. Again, ballots must be received — not just postmarked — by 7 p.m. Aug. 13. Congratulate yourself on a job well done.
And if you don’t like the election results? Well then, feel free to grumble. You’ve earned that right.
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