2006-07-14 Letter to Constance Kiriu re Hawaii's Resign to Run Law and Charter Provisions Pertaining to Vacancies in County Elected Offices

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i Honorable Constance Kiriu July 14, 2006 Page 5 members of the Council. However, under the facts of the present scenario, since the office they seek (the Mayor's Office) begins after the expiration of their present Council term, there is no resignation requirement, as the Constitutional "resign to run" provision is not applicable. 6. Assume one or more Council Members wish to run for Mayor, and they file for nomination to the Mayor's Office after the July 25, 2006, deadline. They will have 10 days to do, pursuant to the Clerk's election proclamation. Is there a similar "10-day window" for citizens to file nomination papers to run for the Council seat that will be vacated in December, 2006? I No. Our laws do not provide for the Clerk to issue an election proclamation in such a case. Only candidates who have filed for election by the September 25, 2006, deadline will appear on the ballot. If there are no candidates who have filed to run for the Council seat in the district, the vacancy on the Council will be filled pursuant to Section 3-4 of the Charter (see discussion below, infra). 7. If there is a mayor's race this year(2006), when will it take place? The first special election (primary election) will take place on the second to the last Saturday in September (September 23, 2006). Section 12-2, Hawaii Revised Statutes, as amended. The second special election (general election), if necessary, will take place on the first Tuesday after the first Monday in November (November 7, 2006). Article 11, Section 8, Hawai'i State Constitution. 8. Is the person elected as a successor to the Mayor allowed to run again for the Mayor's Office? How many times may he/she run for this office? The successor to the Office of the Mayor in the 2006 election will be eligible to run for this office twice more, in 2008 and 2012. As noted above, our Charter provides that "the mayor may serve for more than two terms of office but shall not serve for more than two consecutive full terms of office." Section 5-1.2 (Emphasis supplied). "Terms of office," as the case law instructs us, means "the fixed legal period during which the incumbent may legally hold the office." Sueppel v. City Council of Iowa City, supra.