WAHIAWA, Hawaii (KHON2) — With just a week left until election day, local elections officials are doing what they can to urge voters to take advantage of early voting, hoping to ease the crush at the polls next Tuesday.
Elections officials were pleasantly surprised at the steady stream of voters at the Wahiawa Voter Service Center Tuesday morning.
“We actually had a line as we opened, and I’ve not seen that before. So, it’s very encouraging. I think we’re, right now, probably up to 80 (voters) in the first hour,” said Rex Quidilla, Honolulu Elections Administrator.
Waialua resident Jorge Dela Cruz braved the drive through the rain to vote at the Wahiawa Voter Service Center. He said voting in person is something he’s always done, but even more important this election year.
“I wanted to make sure my ballot went in and it registered properly, just to make sure that everything went okay and nothing was tampered with, actually,” said Dela Cruz, after casting his ballot.
The pop-up voter service centers are just one way elections officials are hoping to avoid the long lines that had voters waiting for hours to cast their ballots back in 2020.
“Avoid the line. Vote now. Skip the line. Vote now,” said Quidilla.
If you missed the Oct. 29 deadline to request an absentee ballot, elections officials said voting in person at one of the service centers is your next best option to make your voice heard.
If you haven’t yet mailed in your ballot, officials recommend you drop it in the mail now to ensure it gets counted by election day. Better yet, drop it off at any ballot drop box.
If there are any issues with your ballot or you need another one, officials said to contact the elections office right away.
Elections officials said that the most common reason why people are requesting replacement ballots this election is because they’re making mistakes answering the constitutional and charter amendment questions. So they’re recommending that voters do their homework before voting.
While recent news about ballot drop boxes on the mainland being set on fire and vandalized, local elections officials said, without going into detail, that there are security measures in place.
“Well, you know, the boxes themselves are designed, they’re purpose-built for elections. You know, we are very, very grateful and happy that we haven’t seen anything like this occur, at least in the city and county. But, rest assured that we collect the ballots from those boxes on a daily basis and, we still encourage people to vote by mail,” said Quidilla.
The Wahiawa Voter Service Center closes on Saturday, but you’ll still be able to vote in person at Honolulu Hale and Kapolei Hale through Election Day.
Visit the Office of Election’s website to register to vote.