Editorial: Misinformation corrupts elections

First of all, thanks to the many volunteers who help Hawaii’s elections run smoothly — efficiently and with integrity.

In a national election season that has turned ugly in many places, it is to Hawaii’s credit that the hard work of decent people is helping to keep voting here free, fair and accurate.

That democratic imperative is embodied by the roughly 400 volunteers for Hawaii’s 2022 elections. Civic-minded citizens who believe in the electoral process are the public’s eyes and ears as general election voting gets underway — working alongside government officials as mail-in ballots start pouring in to the counties and the state Capitol, handling duties that range from unsealing ballot envelopes to observing every step of the operation.

Yet, it’s a sad commentary on modern-day politics that even in the Aloha State, the election system, officials and volunteers are facing unprecedented hostility, even threats. Unfounded claims of voter fraud and conspiracies — such as those that continue to challenge the results of the 2020 presidential election — are undermining faith in the peaceful transfer of power and are disturbing in their extremism.

Secondly, to be clear: Elections are not flawless, perfect operations. Glitches will emerge — due to outdated voter registration rolls, for instance — but that does not mean fraud has occurred. Those who would intentionally cry fraud to advance misinformation — or worse, to discourage or intimidate voters in order to willfully undermine free and fair elections — are the true enemies of democracy.

As noted by the nonpartisan Brookings Institution, “one of the drivers of decreased confidence in the political system has been the explosion of misinformation deliberately aimed at disrupting the democratic process. This confuses and overwhelms voters.”

In the 2020 elections, it found, Russia’s cyber efforts were able to influence public perceptions and sought to amplify mistrust in the U.S. electoral process by denigrating mail-in voting, highlighting alleged irregularities, and fomenting accusations of voter fraud.

These are tangible threats to the U.S. electoral system. And the implications are huge, since decreased confidence in the democratic system decreases civic engagement.

In Hawaii, about 726,000 ballots have been sent to residents for the vote-by-mail Nov. 8 election (see elections.hawaii.gov for more info). Elections officials now must do their part to maintain integrity in the system. A human-error snafu caused last week’s situation, in which 2,300-plus Big Island residents who had not yet voted were erroneously notified via the BallotTrax tracking service that their general election ballots had been received.

The incident immediately raised concerns, but it was quickly discovered to have been due to a clerical error: a county staffer had inadvertently uploaded old data from the August primary election into BallotTrax. The problem’s source was swiftly identified, and the word went out that despite the unfortunate error, no ballots were compromised and voting remains secure.

But the incident does illustrate the extreme care and high bar that all election workers must embrace, to keep Hawaii’s processes and results above reproach.

Good-government groups such as Common Cause and the League of Women Voters also can help instill confidence in the system. They could add their voices to firmly denounce unfounded allegations of election fraud, while affirming the many built-in voting safeguards; as well as press officials to run a high-quality election that is transparent and above board.

Finally, residents of Hawaii, it’s time to choose your elected officials. Engaging in this most democratic, equitable process is enabled by our robust mail-in voting system, and even Election Day voter registration at polling centers. It has never been easier to vote, even as it has become ever more important to confirm your belief in elections as being, truly, the American way.