No. 29646 (October 20, 2009)
Opinion pdf
OPINION OF THE COURT BY RECKENWALD, J.
Roy T. Hiraga and Solomon P. Kaho'ohalahala appeal from the November 1, 2008 decision of the Board of Registration for Maui County (Board) which determined that Kaho'ohalahala was not a resident of Lana'i "[f]or purposes of [the November 2008] election [ . ]"
The case began in September 2008, when appellee Michael P. Dupree and eleven other registered voters from Lana'i sent letters to Hiraga, the Clerk of the County of Maui, which alleged that Kaho'ohalahala was not a Lana'i resident. Hiraga subsequently found, inter alia, that Kaho'ohalahala was a Lana'i resident when he registered to vote there in July 2008. Dupree appealed that determination to the Board, which concluded that Kaho'ohalahala was in fact a resident of Lahaina rather than Lana'i.
The questions on appeal include whether: (1) the Board lacked jurisdiction because Dupree's complaint was an untimely challenge to Kaho'ohalahala's eligibility to be a candidate for the Lana'i seat on the Maui County Council, rather than to his voter registration, (2) the Board exceeded its jurisdiction by addressing issues beyond Kaho'ohalahala's voter registration, and (3) the Board erred in concluding that Kaho'ohalahala was not a Lana'i resident.
For the reasons set forth below, we conclude that the Board had jurisdiction to hear the appeal, the Board did not exceed its jurisdiction by addressing issues beyond Kaho'ohalahala's voter registration status, and the Board did not err in concluding that Kaho'ohalahala did not have the right to remain a registered voter of Lana'i. Accordingly, we affirm the Board's November 1, 2008 decision.
