Residency to vote depends on location, not duration

Question: What are the requirements for a newcomer to Hawaii in establishing residency in order to vote in local elections?

Answer: There is no durational residency requirement to vote in Hawaii.

To be eligible to vote here, you must be a U.S. citizen, a legal resident of the state, at least 18 years of age, not an incarcerated felon and not ruled mentally incompetent by a court.

In 1972 the U.S. Supreme Court declared it was unconstitutional to set lengthy residency requirements beyond 30 to 50 days for voting. Most states have eliminated durational residency requirements, while some have a 10- to 30-day residency or registration requirement.

Section 11-13 of the Hawaii Revised Statutes lays out the rules for determining residency in Hawaii "for election purposes only":

» Your residence is where your "habitation is fixed" and to which, whenever you are absent, you have the "intention to return."

» You do not gain residency in a precinct if you do not have "the present intention of establishing" a permanent dwelling place within the precinct.

» If you reside with your family in one place and do business in another, the former is your place of residence. However, anyone with a family who establishes a dwelling place other than with the family, "with the intention of remaining there," is considered a resident of that dwelling place.

» The mere intention to acquire a new residence without a physical presence does not establish residency; neither does mere physical presence without the concurrent present intention to establish such a place as your residence.

» You do not gain or lose residency solely by reason of being there or not being there, while employed in the service of the United States or of the state of Hawaii, while attending an institution of learning, while kept in an institution or asylum, or while confined in prison.

» No member of the U.S. armed forces, a spouse or dependent is a resident of Hawaii solely by reason of being stationed in the state.

However, there is no "express prohibition" preventing active-duty military and their dependents from claiming residency and voting in Hawaii.

» You lose residency status here if you vote in an election held in another state by absentee ballot or in person.

Question: What happened to Tanabe Superette at 934 Keeaumoku St.? I miss that store. It had a lot of good food.

Answer: The store near the intersection of King and Keeaumoku streets had been a fixture for almost a century, dating back to 1917.

It was known for its local food, including musubis and bentos, but it closed without fanfare in January.

The property is being sold by Chaney Brooks. We left a message with the company asking whether we could speak to the owners, but did not get a call back. 

AUWE

To HPD for citing regular citizens playing tennis a few minutes after Ala Moana Park closes ("Kokua Line," Sept. 15). During our usual exercise walk around Ala Moana Park/Magic Island, it seems that the homeless population on the mauka side of the park gets bigger every day. There is a group in the park opposite Sears that now numbers close to 10, with all their clothes hanging in the trees! At the bus stop near the Waikiki side, there always are three to four individuals camping, while tourists wait for their buses. We’ve also noticed that the supposed shopping cart ban must also be going unenforced, because the homeless are bringing those into the park as well. I guess it’s much easier for HPD to cite citizens for staying a few minutes late than moving out the homeless who have set up a camp for the last month. — Reid 

Write to "Kokua Line" at Honolulu Star-Advertiser, 7 Waterfront Plaza, Suite 210, 500 Ala Moana Blvd., Honolulu 96813; call 529-4773; fax 529-4750; or email kokualine@staradvertiser.com.