Bill would cut election chief’s term

The state’s chief election officer would get a term of office for a shorter, two-year period and receive more scrutiny under a proposal before the Legislature.

Rep. Joy San Bue­na­ven­tura (D, Hawaiian Acres-Pahoa-Kala­pana) said she introduced the bill on behalf of frustrated Pahoa residents who felt disenfranchised in the 2014 primary election and want current Chief Election Officer Scott Nago fired.

Her comments came during a House Judiciary Committee hearing on the bill held Friday. Decision-making is set for 2 p.m. Thursday.

Tropical Storm Iselle wreaked havoc in Lower Puna just days before the August primary election. Since then the region has been contending with potential lava flow threats from Kilauea Volcano.

San Buenaventura said she and other Pahoa residents feel the Office of Elections, under Nago’s leadership, mishandled the primary election situation.

Two Puna precincts were closed Aug. 8, the primary election day, due to damage caused by Iselle. Nearly 8,200 registered voters were told to return Aug. 15 to cast their votes. With the outcome of the close U.S. Senate election still in doubt, the situation became a national news story.

Some Lower Puna residents criticized Nago for first saying he was going to hold an all-mail make-up election for the two precincts but then choosing to hold the follow-up quickly when many still were struggling with the consequences of the storm. Others ripped Nago for deciding to reopen only the two precincts when voters in other Lower Puna precincts also were prevented from casting ballots because of the storm.

San Buenaventura also noted that the election office acknowledged that 800 absentee votes cast on Maui had not been counted.

House Bill 376 would also require the state Elections Commission to conduct a performance evaluation of the election chief within two months after certifying an election, and to hold public hearings on the evaluation before deciding on an appointment or reappointment.

Those provisions of the bill would allow people to voice any concerns about the Office of Elections while the chief election officer could "tell his side of the story," San Bue­na­ven­tura told reporters after Friday’s meeting.

Until now the Elections Commission has held "pro forma" votes reappointing election chiefs, she said. "I understand the idea of depoliticizing the office. However, there’s gotta come a point where competency has to be evaluated."

Several weeks after last year’s primary, the Elections Commission had Nago explain what caused the errors. Several people, including state San. Sam Slom (R, Diamond Head-Kahala-Hawaii Kai) and Hawaii County Councilwoman Brenda Ford, called for Nago’s dismissal.

On Friday the League of Women Voters of Hawaii testified against changing the term of the chief election officer to two years. The state chief election officer now serves a four-year term.

"The chief elections officer needs more than two years in office to think long term," league representative Janet Mason told the committee. The league supports the portion of the bill that calls for a periodic review, Mason said.

To address the league’s concerns, San Bue­na­ven­tura said, she is OK with changing the bill to allow a chief election officer to be given a four-year term when first selected but then be required to subsequently be reappointed every two years.

"I understand there is a learning curve," she said.

Common Cause Hawaii submitted written testimony also raising objections to changing the terms to two years, but suggested that the commission be given explicit authority to remove the election chief for poor performance.

The county clerks of Hawaii, Maui and Kauai counties, who oversee elections on their islands, also submitted written testimony against reducing the term to two years.

About a dozen Hawaii County residents submitted written testimony in support of the bill.

Puna voters "felt really disenfranchised," said San Bue­na­ven­tura, who was elected to the House for the first time in the fall. "When we campaign, we tell them that their vote counts, and in reality they felt that their vote didn’t count. Hundreds of them were prevented after Iselle from physically going to their voting booth. And when they tried to vote in the make-up election, they were denied."