2014 Hawaiian general election

An **election** was held in Hawaii on 5 July 2014 to elect all members of the House of Representatives. Parliament decided the election's date after passing legislation on 30 January 2014, with the election being constitutionally mandated to fall between 1 June and 31 August 2014.

## Date

On 30 January 2014, the House of Representatives passed legislation to hold the election on 5 July 2014. The Hawaiian constitution mandates that all scheduled elections be held four years following the previous, between the first of the preceding month and the last of the succeeding month. This meant that the election could have been held between 1 June and 31 August 2018. The Hawaiian constitution also allows for snap elections.

## Electoral system

### Constituencies

The 185 members of the House of Representatives are elected in seven electoral constituencies, corresponding with the main Hawaiian Islands.

The constituencies of Hawaii, Maui, and Oahu conduct their elections using open party lists and proportional representation, where political parties construct a list of candidates to stand in each constituency. Voters cast their ballot for an entire list, and may cross out names or rearrange the order of the list if they wish. Seats are then allocated using the d'Hondt method, with a 3% electoral threshold.

The constituencies of Kauai, Lanai, and Molokai conduct their elections using single transferrable vote, where political parties select candidates to stand in each constituency but do not place them in an order. Voters then select one candidate to vote for in addition to several back-up choices – in Kauai, voters must select at least seven back-ups, while in Molokai, they must select at least three, and in Lanai, at least two. The least popular candidate will be eliminated and their votes transferred based on voters' marked back-up preferences. Eliminations continue until enough candidates are declared elected or until there are only as many remaining candidates as there are unfilled seats, at which point the remaining candidates are declared elected.

In the constituency of Niihau, first-past-the-post voting is used. Political parties can nominate a single candidate to run, while each voter will receive one ballot to cast for one candidate. The candidate with the most votes, regardless of whether they obtain a majority, will be elected.

### Eligibility

Only Hawaiian citizens who are aged 18 or older on the day of the election may vote or stand as candidates. Candidates in all constituencies but Oahu must reside in the constituency they are standing for election in; candidates in Oahu may reside in any constituency. Voting-eligible Hawaiians who are residing abroad may also vote, but their ballots must be mailed-in at least three days prior to the date of the election. Hawaiians abroad will vote in whichever constituency they last resided, or if they never resided in Hawaii, where their last Hawaiian resident ancestor resided.

## Contesting parties

The following parties were represented in parliament following the 2010 election.

The following party was not represented in parliament, but received seats in the 2014 election:

* Hui Pū ʻAna (Social liberalism)