This election, voters will have the chance to amend the state constitution. The ballot question, “Shall the legislature be authorized to establish, as provided by law, a surcharge on investment real property to be used to support public education?” has been the subject of heated debate. If the majority of votes cast and tallied for […]
Justin Woodson
Quizunderstood: What do you know about Hawaii AG Doug Chin’s decision to resign?
1. Timeshares in Hawaii had a 90.1 percent occupancy rate during the third quarter of 2017, according to a Jan. 4 news release from the Hawaii Tourism Authority. What was the state’s hotel occupancy rate during that same period? A. 90.6 percent B. 88.1 percent C. 87.7 percent D. 84.2 percent E. 81.4 percent 2. […]
2017 MauiTime Year In Review
It’s been a helluva year, and that’s not a good thing. For the United States, the watchwords for 2017 have been violence and hatred–against women, African-Americans, immigrants, LGBTQ individuals and basically everyone who isn’t a straight white male. You don’t have to be a master at reading the room to know that greed and ignorance […]
Hawaii Campaign Spending Commission gives Maui Rep. Justin Woodson small kine fine
I love following the Hawaii Campaign Spending Commission (CSC)’s Twitter account (it’s @hicsc). They don’t tweet all the time, but when they do it’s usually to announce the existence of new campaign reports or candidate fundraiser notices. And sometimes, they’ll post a document that shows a local public official messed up. Such was the case […]
Our take on the 2016 Hawaii Primary Election results for Maui County
Well, we have another Primary Election under our belts–another day in the state’s history when we let a sliver of the population narrow our choices for political leadership. As expected, turnout statewide was pretty lousy–a mere 34.8 percent of Hawaii’s registered voters actually showed up (in Maui County, turnout was an even worse 29.6 percent). […]
MauiTime 2016 Hawaii State Primary Election Endorsement Guide
A man who has nothing for which he is willing to fight, nothing which is more important than his own personal safety, is a miserable creature and has no chance of being free unless made and kept so by the exertions of better men than himself. -John Stuart Mill I enjoy democracy immensely. It is […]
Hawaii Legislature passes HB 2501 ‘water rights’ bill that helps Alexander and Baldwin
Well, they did it. Yesterday, the Hawaii state Senate voted to approve House Bill 2501, which permits Alexander & Baldwin (A&B) to keep diverting East Maui streams for another three years. “The most important thing to understand about HB 2501 is that the Legislature is circumventing a January state court ruling that found A&B has […]
2014 Maui Year In Review
This was a year of great storms, both political and climatic. It’s the year we got the new governor that apparently everyone wanted, and the year some of Maui’s most powerful and infamous police officers decided to hang up their badges (some more willing than others). This was the year Kimo Apana attempted to make […]
Why Gov. Neil Abercrombie Lost & Other Things We Learned From The Hawaii Primary Election
There were about a dozen people in the room when it happened. They were seated around tables, watching two televisions. Patriotic bunting and white signs bearing the name “Abercrombie” hung around the windows that faced Main Street in Wailuku. There was a stack of pizzas off to the side, as well as a few cakes, […]
Today: Hawaii Primary Election
The polls are open across Maui County and won’t close until 6pm tonight. Just two polling places are closed on the Big Island due to Hurricane Iselle. Given the relative calm weather out there, we should have our normally poor turnout, rather than the abysmal numbers political analysts were forecasting. You’d think that since Hawaii votes […]
2014 Hawaii Primary Election Endorsements
For us political junkies, the late summer of an even-numbered year is a magical time. Our airwaves, email and inboxes get jammed with misleading, often shameless propaganda. Battalions of volunteers line roadsides to wave colorful but still bland signs at passing motorists. And, for the true believers, forums pop up at community centers around the […]
Hawaii Democratic Party’s GLBT Caucus Hands Out Primary Endorsements
With the Hawaii Primary Election just a couple weeks away, we’re neck-deep in political endorsements. Here’s a batch from the Hawaii Democratic Party’s Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual and Transgender (GLBT) Caucus. “The GLBT Caucus used a combination of surveys, candidate forums, and voting records to compile the list of supportive candidates,” state’s the caucus’ July 18 […]
Quizunderstood: How well do you know gift disclosures?
1. On Monday, June 30, which Hawaii legislator Tweeted “Outrageous #HobbyLobby ruling lets bosses restrict #freedom of women’s health decisions” in response to that day’s Supreme Court ruling on Burwell v. Hobby Lobby? A. Congresswoman Tulsi Gabbard B. Congresswoman Colleen Hanabusa C. U.S. Senator Brian Schatz D. U.S. Senator Mazie Hirono E. Hawaii State Rep. […]
Couple Surprises In New Sierra Club Hawaii Election Endorsements
Yesterday, Sierra Club’s Hawaii chapter announced their endorsements in the 2014 election. The list of Maui County candidates who got the nod was largely expected, though there were a few surprises. For instance, in 2012, the Sierra Club endorsed 5th District State Senator Shan Tsutsui, 6th District State Senator Roz Baker and 7th District State […]
An Early Look At The Money In Maui County’s 2014 Election
“In a society governed passively by free markets and free elections, organized greed always defeats disorganized democracy.” -Matt Taibbi, Griftopia: Bubble Machines, Vampire Squids, and the Long Con That Is Breaking America With that bit of optimism, here’s my first look at the influence of money in the Maui County’s 2014 election. The first real campaign finance […]
UPDATED: Kahului Rep. Justin Woodson Announces Joe Souki Endorsement He Didn’t Get
[NOTE: I updated the following post to include Woodson’s response to The Maui News story, which arrived on the afternoon of May 12] Pro tip: If you send out a press release announcing that the Speaker of the House of Representatives has endorsed you for reelection, make sure said Speaker has actually endorsed you. Rookie […]