Updated at 5:24 p.m., Friday, February 16, 2007
Neighborhood Board elections to offer online ballots
Advertiser Staff
Honolulu residents will be allowed to cast ballots online for the first time in this year's neighborhood board elections.The elections, held every two years, were previously held only by mail, and to save taxpayers money, ballots were not mailed out for uncontested races. In the 2005 elections, only 25 percent of the 198,405 ballots that the city mailed out were returned.
This spring's elections are being held to fill 444 seats on the 32 neighborhood boards, which serve as grassroots advisory bodies for government.
Paper ballots will still be mailed for contested races. Each paper ballot will include a voter number for those who wish to vote online. Beginning March 23, voters may begin voting at www.nbvote.com.
For uncontested races, voters will not receive paper ballots, but they will have the opportunity to vote online.
The voting Web site will be operational Feb. 21. Registered voters may visit that site to request a voter number. Registered voters include anyone who voted in last fall's elections or registered by the Jan. 16, 2007, deadline.
To see candidate profiles or for more information, go to www.honolulu.gov/nco.
The deadline for voting is April 16. Results will be made public on May 1.
