Posted on: Thursday, October 10, 2002
Rep. Mink's name to stay on general election ballot
• Federal education law renamed after Mink
By Johnny Brannon
Advertiser Staff Writer
The Hawai'i Supreme Court yesterday rejected a petition by Gov. Ben Cayetano that would have allowed the state Democratic Party to name a substitute candidate for deceased U.S. Rep. Patsy Mink in the Nov. 5 general election.
The decision means Mink's name will remain on the ballot, and that a special election, open to a flood of candidates, will be held as soon as January if she wins posthumously.
"We're disappointed in the court's ruling, but we accept it," Cayetano said.
A special election is scheduled for Nov. 30 to elect a candidate to serve out the remainder of Mink's term, which ends Jan. 3. More than 20 people have officially declared themselves candidates.
Cayetano said he had tried to spare voters the time and expense of being faced with up to three elections within 60 days. Each special election will cost up to $1.4 million, he said.
Mink, who represented Hawai'i's 2nd Congressional District, died on Sept. 28 of viral pneumonia, two days too late for the Democrats to replace her on the Nov. 5 ballot after she won the Sept. 21 primary.
Cayetano asked the high court to find that Mink's death had created a special circumstance, and to direct state Chief Elections Officer Dwayne Yoshina to extend the time limit until today.
But the court ruled that such decisions fall under Yoshina's discretion, and that the court had no authority to force his hand.
The state Attorney General's Office argued for Cayetano that Yoshina has the authority to waive the time limit under special circumstances, such as when death or disqualification of a candidate creates an election vacancy.
Cayetano said the problem is that Yoshina and the state Elections Commission had not adopted administrative rules pertaining to such situations, and that he had hoped the court would find that a reason to order the deadline extended.
The court's ruling did not directly address whether Yoshina could still decide to waive the time limit, but it is highly unlikely that he will do so. Yoshina could not be reached for comment after the decision was issued.
Hawai'i Democratic Party chairwoman Lorraine Akiba said she had serious concerns about the governor's petition and that she was pleased the high court ruled quickly to resolve the issue.
"We will encourage voters of Hawai'i to vote for Mrs. Mink again to thank her and honor her for her record of service and also to vote for a special election on Jan. 4, 2003," Akiba said. "Our main concern as the Democratic Party of Hawai'i is to make sure that the process regarding a special election is fair, just and open and that we ensure that the voters of Hawai'i are given the broadest possible choices of leaders to select for this very important seat."
But Cayetano noted that the second special election, for the next full term in office, could be so crowded with candidates that one could win with a small percentage of the vote.
"The election in January, should there be one, can be really a wild, swinging thing," Cayetano said. "It is a one-winner-take-all election. It's a one-time deal. You don't have a primary, and that's kind of sad."
Republican state Rep. Bob McDermott, Mink's opponent on the Nov. 5 ballot and a candidate for the remainder of her current term, said he was pleased that the court had not ordered the candidate substitution deadline extended.
"The only one who asked for it to be done was the governor, and he's not even a party to the election," McDermott said.
Prominent candidates such as state Rep. Ed Case and former Gov. John Waihee plan to run for Mink's seat in the special election that will be held if Mink wins on Nov. 5. McDermott said he was glad the Democrats won't have the option of appointing someone else to run against him that day.
"If they would have picked a guy like Waihee tomorrow, there would have been no TV debates because there's not much time left, and it would have been very difficult for a guy like me to get my message out," he said.
The Supreme Court ruling was signed by Chief Justice Ronald T.Y. Moon and Associate Justices Paula A. Nakayama and Mario R. Ramil, and by Intermediate Court of Appeals Chief Judge James S. Burns, in place of absent Associate Justice Steven H. Levinson. Supreme Court Associate Justice Simeon R. Acoba Jr. authored a concurring opinion.
Advertiser Staff Writer Lynda Arakawa contributed to this report.
Reach Johnny Brannon at jbrannon@honoluluadvertiser.com or 525-8070.
