Office of Elections

Office	Districts	Term	Qualifications
Federal Offices
U.S. Representative	I and II	2 years Jan. 2027 to Jan. 2029	• U.S. citizen for 7 years • Inhabitant of Hawaii when elected • At least 25 years of age
State Offices
Governor	State of Hawaii	4 years Dec. 2026 to Dec. 2030	• Resident of Hawaii for not less than 5 years immediately preceding the election • Registered voter of Hawaii • At least 30 years of age
Lieutenant Governor	State of Hawaii	4 years Dec. 2026 to Dec. 2030	• Resident of Hawaii for not less than 5 years immediately preceding the election • Registered voter of Hawaii • At least 30 years of age
State Senate	2, 5, 8, 9, 10, 11, 13, 14, 15, 17, 20, 21, 25	4 years Nov. 2026 to Nov. 2030	• Resident of Hawaii for not less than 3 years prior to election • Qualified voter of the appropriate State Senatorial District prior to filing
State Representative	1 – 51	2 years Nov. 2026 to Nov. 2028	• Resident of Hawaii for not less than 3 years prior to election • Qualified voter of the appropriate State Representative District prior to filing
Office of Hawaiian Affairs Trustee	Maui Resident Trustee, Oahu Resident Trustee, At-Large Trustee (3 seats)	4 years Nov. 2026 to Nov. 2030	• Resident of respective island for seats requiring residence • Registered voter of Hawaii
County of Hawaii Offices
Councilmember	1 – 9	2 years Dec. 2026 to Dec. 2028	• Resident and registered voter of the Council District at least 90 days prior to primary election • Qualified voter of Hawaii County for at least 1 year prior to election
County of Maui Offices
Mayor	County of Maui	4 years Jan. 2027 to Jan. 2031	• Resident of Maui County for a period of at least 1 year prior to filing • Qualified voter of Maui County
Councilmember	East Maui, West Maui, Wailuku-Waihee- Waikapu, Kahului, South Maui, Makawao- Haiku-Paia, Upcountry, Lanai, Molokai	2 years Jan. 2027 to Jan. 2029	• Resident in the area of the county from which the person seeks to be elected for a period of 1 year before filing • Qualified voter of Maui County
County of Kauai Offices
Mayor	County of Kauai	4 years Dec. 2026 to Dec. 2030	• Resident of Kauai County for at least 3 years prior to election • Qualified voter of Kauai County • 30 years of age
Councilmember	County of Kauai, 7 seats	2 years Dec. 2026 to Dec. 2028	• Qualified voter of Kauai County at least 2 years prior to election
City and County of Honolulu Offices
Councilmember	II, IV, VI, VIII	4 years Jan. 2027 to Jan. 2031	• Resident and registered voter of the appropriate Council District

Candidates may use the Online Candidate System to generate a nomination paper to print to use for collecting signatures.

To use the system candidates will need:

• Hawaii Driver’s License or Hawaii State ID card
• Social Security Number
• Printer
• White 8-1/2” x 11” paper

Using the system doesn’t guarantee candidacy. Candidates must submit their completed nomination paper to their Elections Office by June 2, 2026, 4:30 pm.

Video tutorial on how to use the online Candidate System.

Candidates must complete and file a nomination paper to appear on the ballot. To obtain a nomination paper, candidates must first complete an Application for a Nomination Paper.

Completed applications can be submitted starting February 2, 2026, at the following locations to receive a nomination paper:

• Office of Elections: federal and state elective offices
• Clerk's Office in the Counties of Hawaii, Maui, Kauai: respective federal, state, and county elective offices
• City and County of Honolulu Clerk's Office: City and County of Honolulu elective offices only

Office	Location	Contact	Hours of Operation
Federal and State	Office of Elections 802 Lehua Avenue Pearl City, HI 96782	(808) 453-8683	Monday through Friday 7:45 AM - 4:30 PM
Federal, State, and County of Hawaii	Office of the County Clerk 25 Aupuni Street, Room 1502 Hilo, HI 96720	(808) 961-8277	Monday through Friday 7:45 AM - 3:30 PM By Appointment Only
Federal, State, and County of Hawaii	Kona Elections Division West Hawaii Civic Center 74-5044 Ane Keohokalole Highway Building D, 1st Floor Kailua-Kona, HI 96740	(808) 323-4400	Monday through Friday 7:45 AM - 3:30 PM By Appointment Only
Federal, State, and County of Maui	Office of the County Clerk 200 S. High Street, Room 708 Wailuku, HI 96793	(808) 270-7749	Monday through Friday 7:45 AM - 4:30 PM By Appointment Only
Federal, State, and County of Kauai	Office of the County Clerk 4386 Rice Street, Room 101 Lihue, HI 96766	(808) 241-4800	Monday through Friday 7:45 AM - 4:30 PM
City and County of Honolulu	Office of the City Clerk 530 S. King Street, Room 100 Honolulu, HI 96813	(808) 768-3800	Monday through Friday 7:45 AM - 4:30 PM By Appointment Only

Candidates must designate the name they want to appear on the ballot. The ballot name:

• May include Hawaiian and/or English equivalents or nicknames
• Contain a maximum of 27 typed spaces; including letters, spaces, and punctuation marks
• Be in the format prescribed by the Office of Elections and otherwise meet the statutory and administrative rules requirements associated with ballot names.

A nomination paper must be signed by a minimum number of properly registered voters qualified to vote for the candidate.

Office Sought	Minimum Valid Signatures Required
U.S. Representative	25
Governor	25
Lieutenant Governor	25
State Senate	15
State Representative	15
Office of Hawaiian Affairs Trustee	25
Mayor	15
Councilmember	15

For a signature to be valid, the individual signing the nomination paper:

• Must live and be properly registered to vote in the district from which the candidate seeks office
• May sign as many nomination papers as there are seats to be filled
• Must include name, signature, residence address, and month and day of birth

Candidates may provide a statement and photo for inclusion in the Digital Voter Guide. The guide will include statements and photos from the candidates, voting information, and explanations for amendment questions. The guide will be available ahead of ballots arriving to voters for the Primary and General Election.

Candidates can submit their statement and photo through the online Candidate Statement Intake.

Deadline

Statement and photo must be submitted before filing the nomination paper. Once the nomination paper is filed, candidates may not add, edit, or remove their statement or photo.

Statement Guidelines

The statement must be less than 150 words. If over, statements will be truncated beginning with the sentence that contains the 150th word. Candidates are encouraged to review their statement for spelling and grammatical errors as statements will be printed as submitted.

Candidate information from the Application for a Nomination Paper will be included in the guide and will not count towards the word limit. Information includes Legal Name, Ballot Name, Office, Political Affiliation, Phone, Email, and Website.

Tips for candidates:

• Treat this as a resume and edit carefully.
• Offer your vision.
• Be positive.
• Think of what you want to accomplish if elected.
• Avoid criticism of your opponent.

The candidate statement may be rejected if it contains obscene and/or profane language. Candidates will be notified if their statement does not meet the requirements and will have one business day to submit a new statement.

Photo Guidelines

Photo should be recent, portrait style, front facing, showing the candidate’s face and shoulders. For best results, use a plain, solid, light-colored background. The photo should be no smaller than 3 x 3 inches (900 x 900 pixels). The Office of Elections will not edit or alter any photos.

Items that can be construed as representing an organization should not be used. Candidates will be notified if their photo does not meet the requirements and they will have one business day to submit a new photo.

Candidates must submit payment at the time of filing. The filing fee is based on the office the candidate is seeking.

Discounted filing fees are available for candidates seeking state or county office. Candidates interested in a discounted filing fee must agree to abide by the state’s voluntary campaign expenditure limits by submitting an affidavit to Campaign Spending Commission prior to filing their nomination papers.

Office Sought	Filing Fee	Discounted Fee
U.S. Representative	$75	N/A
Governor	$750	$75
Lieutenant Governor	$750	$75
State Senator	$250	$25
State Representative	$250	$25
Office of Hawaiian Affairs Trustee	$250	$25
Mayor	$500	$50
Councilmember	$250	$25

Accepted forms of payment:

• Cash
• Money order
• Cashier’s check
• Certified check

Made payable to:

• Federal & State Offices: Office of Elections
• Hawaii County Offices: Director of Finance
• Maui County Offices: County of Maui
• Kauai County Offices: Director of Finance
• Honolulu City Offices: City & County of Honolulu

The deadline to file a nomination paper is June 2, 2026, 4:30 pm.

When filing a nomination paper, all candidates must certify that they:

• Will qualify under the law for the office sought
• Has determined all of the information on the nomination paper is true and correct, except for the information provided by the signatories
• Are in compliance with HRS § 831-2, which provides that a person sentenced for a felony, from the time of the person's sentence until the person's final discharge, may not become a candidate for or hold public office.

Partisan candidates are required to certify that they are a member of the political party listed on the nomination paper.

County candidates are required to certify that they have complied with the relevant provisions of the applicable county charter and county ordinances pertaining to elected officials.

All candidates are required to provide a notarized written oath or affirmation. The oath or affirmation statement is on the nomination paper.

If a candidate is a state or county officeholder seeking a federal office, there is no resignation requirement.

Additionally, a state or county officeholder whose successor would regularly be elected at the same election in which they are a candidate for another state or county office is not required to resign.

However, a state or county officeholder, whose successor would not regularly be elected at the same election in which they are a candidate for another state or county office is required to resign. This resignation needs to occur prior to the state or county officeholder filing a nomination paper for the new state or county office.

Objections can be made by a registered voter, an officer of a qualified political party, the chief election officer, or the county clerk in the case of a county election.

All objections must be filed in writing no later than June 9, 2026, 4:30 pm.

Objections by a registered voter are filed with the chief election officer or the county clerk in the case of a county election. Objections by an officer of a qualified political party are filed with the Clerk of the Circuit Court.

Candidates will be notified of any challenge by registered or certified mail. The chief election officer or county clerk may hold meetings to gather facts for a preliminary decision on the merits of the objection. A decision must be made within five working days after the objection was filed.

If the decision is that the objection warrants disqualification of the candidate, the chief election officer or county clerk will file a complaint with the Clerk of the Circuit Court within seven working days after the objection was filed.

The Clerk of the Circuit Court will issue a summons to the candidate to appear before the court not later than 4:30 p.m. on the fifth day after service of the summons.

The Circuit Court will hear the matter in a summary manner and issue its judgment to the chief election officer or county clerk, not later than 4:30 p.m. on the fourth day after the return on the summons to appear before it.

If the judgment is to disqualify the candidate, the chief election officer or county clerk will follow the procedures set forth in HRS §§ 11-117 and 11-118 regarding the disqualification of candidates.

Candidates are required to file reports with the following agencies. Contact appropriate agency for information on additional requirements. County candidates, check with your County Elections Division for county ethics requirements.

Federal Offices

Federal Election Commission, Information Services
999 East Street, North West
Washington, D.C., 20463
Phone: (800) 424-9530
www.fec.gov

State and County Offices

Campaign Spending Commission
235 South Beretania Street, Room 300
Honolulu, Hawaii 96813
Phone: (808) 586-0285
www.ags.hawaii.gov/campaign

State Offices

Hawaii State Ethics Commission
1001 Bishop Street, Suite 970
Honolulu, Hawaii 96813
Phone: (808) 587-0460
www.ethics.hawaii.gov