The Hawaii Supreme Court on Thursday ordered the state Office of Elections to hold off on making candidate paperwork available to political office seekers.
Those district boundaries determine where candidates can run and where residents can vote.
In its order, the state Supreme Court indicates that nomination papers won’t be made available until the legal challenge over the maps is resolved. The court also ordered the nine-member reapportionment commission and the state to file a response to the petition by March 3.
Bill Hicks is the lead plaintiff in the petition to the state’s highest court. He’s joined by 10 other Hawaii residents living on Oahu, Maui and the Big Island.
The plaintiffs contend that the new legislative maps do not comply with a requirement in the constitution that each Senate district be comprised of two House districts.
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Blaze Lovell is a reporter for Civil Beat. Born and raised on Oahu, Lovell is a graduate of the University of Nevada, Las Vegas. You can reach him at blovell@civilbeat.com.