Search

Menu

Close

Sandy Ma

Executive Director of Common Cause Hawaii

Hawaii Primary Election Stifled by Minimal Vote Centers, Long Lines

Press Release

Hawaii Primary Election Stifled by Minimal Vote Centers, Long Lines

Hawaii’s primary election took place Saturday, August 13th, and was plagued by hours-long lines prompted by only one Voter Service Center on Maui island. On Maui island, only one voting location was open, where voters began lining up prior to its opening at 7:00 AM.

Common Cause Hawaii Urges Election Officers to Add Additional Voter Service Centers and Drop Boxes for A More Accessible Election Season

Press Release

Common Cause Hawaii Urges Election Officers to Add Additional Voter Service Centers and Drop Boxes for A More Accessible Election Season

Today, Common Cause Hawaii is calling on county election administrators to add new Voter Service Centers and Drop Boxes across the state for a truly fair, inclusive election, citing a newly released “Voting Location Siting Tool.”

House Bill 862 Awarded Annual Rusty Scalpel Award By Good Government Groups

Press Release

House Bill 862 Awarded Annual Rusty Scalpel Award By Good Government Groups

Award given to state legislature's most dishonest "gut and replace" legislation. Honolulu, HI — Today, Common Cause Hawaii and The League of Women Voters of Hawaii announced that this year’s Rusty Scalpel Award for most unconstitutional state legislation was given to HB 862 “Relating to State Government,” for its overly-broad scope, ever-changing intent, and lack of transparency throughout the bill-to-law process. The Honolulu Star-Advertiser urged Governor Ige to veto the legislation, which he included on his intent-to-veto list...

Honolulu Civil Beat – May 17, 2021 – Community Voice – Remote Testimony Worked Well This Session. Now Let’s Make It Even Better

News Clip

Honolulu Civil Beat – May 17, 2021 – Community Voice – Remote Testimony Worked Well This Session. Now Let’s Make It Even Better

The 2021 Hawaii legislative session was momentous and not just for the issues addressed (or left unaddressed). It was conducted entirely remotely for the first time, given that the Capitol was closed to the public due to COVID-19.

For years, advocates have supported remote public testimony. This would seem reasonable and necessary, given our island state and with the Capitol located on Oahu. Hawaii and Maui county councils have had a hybrid system, allowing both in-person and remote testimony at satellite locations.

Honolulu Star-Advertiser Letter to the Editor – March 18, 2021 – AVR won’t expose voters’ private data

News Clip

Honolulu Star-Advertiser Letter to the Editor – March 18, 2021 – AVR won’t expose voters’ private data

There has been misleading messaging trying to scare Hawaii about automatic voter registration (AVR), but we know better. Some people, including elected officials, are saying that AVR will let voters’ private data become public. This is just plain false. Hawaii has a longstanding law in place specifically to protect people’s voter registration data — Hawaii Revised Statutes § 11-97 — and the current AVR bill moving in the Legislature, Senate Bill 159, SD1, will not change that. A county clerk may not disclose voter registration...

Honolulu Civil Beat – March 04, 2021 – Hawaii’s Pro-Voting Reforms Are Strengthening Our Elections

News Clip

Honolulu Civil Beat – March 04, 2021 – Hawaii’s Pro-Voting Reforms Are Strengthening Our Elections

Opinion by Sandy Ma, Common Cause Hawaii's Executive Director: Hawaii has a long and noble history of promoting voting among its people. During this Women’s History Month, we proudly remember that under the first Constitution of the Hawaiian Kingdom, women sat and voted alongside men in the legislative sessions of the House of Nobles.

Hawaii’s elected officials, especially state leadership in the House and Senate, understand that automatic voter registration will eliminate barriers to registering to vote, especially for...

Honolulu Star-Advertiser Column: Hawaii’s vote-by-mail works, but improvements are necessary

News Clip

Honolulu Star-Advertiser Column: Hawaii’s vote-by-mail works, but improvements are necessary

Hawaii’s vote-by-mail process adopted in 2019, prior to the advent of the coronavirus, was proven emphatically to work. It significantly increased Hawaii’s disgracefully low voter turnout rate, even in the middle of a pandemic. Voter turnout increased by more than 16% over the previous primary in a general election year, and by more than 14% over the prior general election!

Even though Hawaii’s mail-in balloting process was successful, improvements should still be made.

This column was authored by Sandy Ma,...

Load More

Close

    • Close

    Hello! It looks like you're joining us from {state}.

    Want to see what's happening in your state?

    Go to Common Cause {state}