PART I. GENERAL PROVISIONS

 

§11-1  Definitions.  Whenever used inthis title, the words and phrases in this title shall, unless the same isinconsistent with the context, be construed as follows:

"Ballot", a ballot including anabsentee ballot is a written or printed, or partly written and partly printedpaper or papers containing the names of persons to be voted for, the office tobe filled, and the questions or issues to be voted on.  A ballot may consist ofone or more cards or pieces of paper, or one face of a card or piece of paper,or a portion of the face of a card or piece of paper, depending on the numberof offices, candidates to be elected thereto, questions or issues to be votedon, and the voting system in use.  It shall also include the face of themechanical voting machine when arranged with cardboard or other material withinthe ballot frames, containing the names of the candidates and questions to bevoted on.

"Chief election officer", theindividual appointed by the elections commission pursuant to section 11-1.6 tosupervise state elections.

"Clerk", the county clerks of therespective counties.

"County", the counties of Hawaii,Maui, Kauai, and the city and county of Honolulu, as the context may require. For the purposes of this title, the county of Kalawao shall be deemed to beincluded in the county of Maui.

"Election", all elections, primary,special primary, general, special general, special, or county, unless otherwisespecifically stated.

"Election officials", precinctofficials and other persons designated as officials by the chief electionofficer.

"Hawaiian", any descendant of theaboriginal peoples inhabiting the Hawaiian Islands which exercised sovereigntyand subsisted in the Hawaiian Islands in 1778, and which peoples thereafterhave continued to reside in Hawaii.

"Office", an elective public office.

"Political party" or"party", a political party qualified under part V of this chapter.

"Precinct", the smallest politicalsubdivision established by law.

"Primary", a preliminary election inwhich the voters nominate candidates for office as provided for in chapter 12.

"Runoff election" means any singleelection required by county charters preceded by an election that failed toelect a candidate.

"Service bureau" means a firmregistered to do business in the State and whose principal business isfurnishing data processing services.

"Special election", any singleelection required by law when not preceded by an election to nominate thosecandidates whose names appear on the special election ballot.

"Special primary election" and"special general election", elections held only (a) whenever anyvacancy occurs in the offices of United States senator, United Statesrepresentative, state senator, or state representative because of failure toelect a person at an uncontested general election or (b) as specified in countycharters.

"Voter", any person duly registeredto vote.

"Voter turnout", means the totalnumber of voters at an election as determined by the number of ballot cardstabulated by the computer or of paper ballots counted by the precinctofficials.  When there is more than one ballot card issued to each voter,"voter turnout" means the total count of the alpha ballot card withthe highest number of cards tabulated by the computer.  Ballots that are blankor ballots that are rejected for any reason shall be included in the count ofthe total number of voters.

"Voting system", the use of paperballots, electronic ballot cards, voting machines, or any system by which votesare cast and counted. [L 1970, c 26, pt of §2; am L 1973, c 217, §1(a); am L1979, c 196, §3; am L 1980, c 264, §1(a); am L 1987, c 232, §1; am L 1990, c156, §4; am L Sp 1995, c 27, §§3, 15; am L 1996, c 239, §1; am L 1998, c 22,§1; am L 1999, c 141, §§3, 4; am L 2004, c 57, §7]