Eight of the nine members of the Maui County Council were sworn into office on Monday, and the fate of the last seat remains up in the air.
In November, incumbent Alice Lee claimed the Wailuku-Waiheʻe-Waikapu residency seat with a little more than 500 votes over her opponent. Shortly after, a lawsuit challenged the results, claiming the county and state didn’t properly notify more than 800 voters.
Lance D. Collins is the attorney for the 30 election challengers, and race runner-up Noelani Ahia.
“The clerk is required to give notice to voters that their envelope has been deemed deficient so that they can cure it or contest it, so that their ballot can be counted,” Collins said.
He said that because some several hundred voters were not notified, due to a late mailing, some voters didn’t get a chance to have their ballot counted.
“Because of the weekend and holidays, people didn't actually get it either until the day before the deadline to cure or they didn't get it until the day of the deadline, or they didn't get it until like a week after,” Collins said.
The case, which is pending before the Hawaiʻi Supreme Court, names the state Office of Elections, County Clerk and Lee. The court will hear oral arguments on Jan. 19.
The state Supreme Court can either validate the election and let the county certify the results, or invalidate it and force a special election, which is what the plaintiffs are seeking.
Lee has served several terms as a council member on and off since the late '80s, and has spent the last three as chair.
“I believe this lawsuit has no merit,” Lee said Tuesday. “They are making a variety of claims against our staff, our election staff, who I believe did not do anything wrong, carried out their duties as expected, according to the state laws. And for the other side, they lost by 513 votes, and so now, they are trying desperately to overturn that election.”
Until the election is certified, the seat will remain unoccupied, and the council will operate with eight members.
The state Office of Elections did not respond to a request for comment.
