Long Lines Suppress Votes on Election Day: Election Officials Plan to do it Again in 2026
by Andrew Walden
Election Day 2020, 2022, and 2024 were marred by long lines around Honolulu Hale and Kapiolani Hale forcing voters to wait hours to cast their ballot.
The Honolulu City Clerk's plan for 2026? A repeat performance.
The office of Honolulu City Clerk Glen I. Takahashi has posted the locations of ‘Voter Service Centers’ and drop boxes for the 2026 Primary and General Elections.
Once again, the nearly one million people on Oahu will have only two places to vote if they are casting a ballot in-person on Saturday, August 8, 2026, Primary Day or Tuesday, November 3, 2026, Election Day: Kapolei Hale and Honolulu Hale.
Because of Trumpster conspiracy theories, Hawaii Republican walk-in voters in 2022 and 2024 outnumbered Democrats 2-1--even though the state is overwhelmingly Democrat. Obviously, by artificially creating long lines, Takahashi is suppressing Republican votes. In 2024, Hawai'i Free Press demonstrated mathematically how the voter suppression affected several down-ticket races.
Unfortunately, Republican ‘representatives’ on the State Election Commission have done everything EXCEPT act on the shortage of in-person Primary Day and Election Day polling places.
Democracy requires an election system that respects the voting rights of all citizens. By suppressing in-person Primary Day and Election Day voters, Hawaii election officials are feeding the same Republican ‘election denier’ conspiracy theories which make the Election Day and Primary day turnout so heavily Republican in the first place.
Long lines aren’t the only obstacle for Election Day voters.
On Oahu, Voters from Laie made a 70-mile roundtrip to reach Kapolei Hale or Honolulu Hale.
On Kauai, the only Voter Service Center was in Lihue, requiring a 65-mile roundtrip for voters from Waimea or Hanalei.
On Maui, the only Voter Service Center was in Wailuku, necessitating a five-hour roundtrip from Hana.
On the Big Island, the only Voter Service Centers were in Hilo and Kailua-Kona. Voters from Hawi or Naalehu faced a four-hour round trip to vote.
All of these Voter Service Centers were located in centers of public employment, effectively boosting union voters’ turnout. The further from the seat of government, the harder to cast a ballot on Election Day.
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