Elections Commission Votes for Statewide Audit, Return to In-Person Voting, and Verification of Big Island’s Missing 19,000 Ballot Receipts
Seven-Hour Meeting Ends with Narrow Vote to Keep Chief Election Officer Scott Nago
Honolulu, HI — After nearly seven hours of testimony and debate, the Hawaiʻi State Elections Commission concluded its October 1, 2025 meeting with a series of landmark decisions aimed at strengthening election integrity and public trust.
The Commission approved motions for a statewide audit, a return to in-person, hand-counted voting, and a requirement that Hawaiʻi County produce missing U.S. Postal Service receipts for more than 19,000 mail-in ballot envelopes from the 2024 General Election.
October 1 meeting summary https://elections.hawaii.gov/wp-content/uploads/2025-10-01-EC-Written-Summary.pdf
- Statewide Election Audit Approved
The Commission unanimously voted to request that the Legislature direct the State Auditor, under HRS §23, to conduct a comprehensive audit of the Office of Elections and all county clerks. The audit will examine compliance with HAR §3-177-453, which governs the accountability and security of ballots statewide.
- Commission Calls for Return to In-Person Voting
The Commission also voted to advise the Legislature and Chief Election Officer to transition back to precinct-based, in-person voting using hand-counted paper ballots and voter ID verification, with absentee voting limited to military and special-needs voters.
Commissioners noted that counting ballots where they are cast enhances transparency and restores public confidence.
- Big Island Ordered to Produce USPS Receipts for 19,000 Mail Ballots
The Commission directed the Office of Elections to obtain from Hawaiʻi County and provide to the Commission a complete set of USPS Business Reply Mail receipts documenting all mail ballots received during the 2024 General Election.
The motion seeks to reconcile a major discrepancy — the County reported receiving 76,595 ballots, but only 57,553 envelopes can be accounted for, leaving 19,042 ballots unexplained.
During discussion, Commissioner Jeffery Osterkamp opposed the motion, arguing that relying on postal receipts was “not a good way” to confirm the number of ballots delivered because that’s not the way they do it. yet simultaneously acknowledged that not having the receipts would “feed more distrust in the system.”
Osterkamp stated:
“If we can’t come up with the precise receipts, which presumably they cannot or they would have already provided that to the Commission a long time ago — that’s gonna feed more distrust in the system.”
Observers quickly pointed out the irony: in an all mail-in election, that commissioners are rejecting postal receipts as proof of ballot delivery from the postal system.
Despite the opposition, the motion passed, and the receipts are expected to be presented at the Commission’s next meeting on October 29, 2025.
Narrow Miss on Removing Chief Election Officer
A motion to remove Chief Election Officer Scott Nago narrowly failed, five votes to four, after extended debate on record transparency and ballot accountability.
The close result underscored divisions within the Commission and growing calls for reform. Two new commissioners felt they did have enough information to remove Mr. Nago.
Next Steps
The Commission will reconvene on October 29, 2025, to review the Hawaiʻi County USPS receipt records and continue discussion of audit procedures and election accountability.
The full video of the October 1 meeting is available at: https://elections.hawaii.gov/about-us/boards-and-commissions/elections-commission
The post HUGE EXCLUSIVE: Hawaii Elections Commission Votes for Statewide Audit, Return to In-Person Voting, and Verification of Big Island’s Missing 19,000 Ballot Receipts first appeared on Joe Hoft.