Office of Elections

When voters cast their vote for president and vice president, they are actually casting a vote for the slate of electors who has pledged their support for those candidates. In Hawaii, the names of the candidates for president and vice president are used on the general election ballot in place of the electors’ names. The votes cast for president and vice president determine which electors meet for Electoral College. The Electoral College is a body of electors who meet every presidential election to elect the next president and vice president of the United States. Pursuant to the Electoral Count Reform Act of 2022, the Electoral College will meet on the first Tuesday after the second Wednesday in December.

The Electoral College will be held on December 17, 2024, 2:00 p.m.

There are 538 electors nationwide in each presidential election, which is equal to the total voting membership of the United States Congress. This is made up of 435 United States Representatives, 100 United States Senators, and 3 electors from the District of Columbia. The number of electors that each state receives is based on the size of the state’s population. Population numbers are obtained through census, which is conducted every 10 years. Each state is allocated a number of electors equal to the number of its U.S. Senators and U.S. Representatives. Hawaii has four (4) electoral votes.

The chosen electors gather at the Electoral College in their respective states to cast their votes for president and vice president. The votes cast  at the Electoral College are sent to the President of the Senate who reads them before a joint session of Congress on January 6 following the general election. The presidential ticket with the majority of votes is declared president and vice president.

If no candidate receives a majority of electoral votes (i.e. 270 out of 538), the U.S. House of Representatives elects the president from the three (3) presidential candidates who received the most electoral votes. Each state delegation has one (1) vote. The U.S. Senate elects the vice president from the two (2) vice president candidates with the most electoral votes. Each U.S. Senator casts one (1) vote for vice presidential. If the U.S. House of Representatives fails to elect a president by Inauguration Day, the vice president elect serves as acting president until the deadlock is resolved in the U. S. House of Representatives.

Selection of Electors

Qualified political parties and parties or groups that complied with the presidential petition requirements of HRS §11-113 shall submit to the chief election officer its electors and alternates, after holding a state party or group convention pursuant to the constitution, bylaws, and rules of the party or group.

Members of Congress and employees of the federal government are prohibited from serving as an elector in order to maintain the balance between the legislative and executive branches of the federal government.

For more information about the Electoral College, please visit the National Archives and Records Administration or refer to U.S. Constitution, Article II, and HRS §11-113 and Chapter 14.

2024 Presidential Electors and Alternates

Last Updated on October 30, 2024