Short takes, outtakes, our takes and other stuff you should know about public information, government accountability and ethical leadership in Hawaii. Home in the islands, in the middle of the sea: It seems every election cycle there are challenges to candidate residencies. Sometimes they can go on for years, like for former state Rep.
Calvin Say and former state Sen. Brickwood Galuteria, who ultimately prevailed in their respective cases and are currently serving in other offices. This year there were no less than four claims that 2024 candidates do not actually live in the district they wish to represent, but all four challenges were denied by the state Office of Elections.
They included a challenge to Office of Hawaiian Affairs Trustee Luana Alapa’s nomination paperwork. The issue was was brought by one of her opponents on Molokai. Honolulu property records show that Alapa is a lessee on Hawaiian homelands in the Kalawahine neighborhood near Papakolea, and has had that lease since the early 2000s.
Alapa said she has lived on Molokai since 2019 on a 5-acre lot shared by her family. She said her daughter now lives in the Kalawahine home, where Alapa also stays while she attends OHA meetings on Oahu. “I save OHA money when I opt not to take a hotel or rental car and stay with my daughter,” she said.
Hawaii Chief Election Officer Scott Nago also ruled this week that Hawaii County Councilwoman Sue Lee Loy is eligible to run for the state House District 2 seat vacated when.