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Changing Hawaii
AS a bona fide hand-over-the-heart, "Go U.S.A. in the Olympics!" screaming American citizen, I acknowledge the relevance and responsibility of casting a ballot. But I absolutely abhor going to the polls on election day. Absentee voting
is awesome
alternativeInevitably, it's hard to find parking. The lines of humanity are long and lumbering.
And you can really stress out thinking about all the other things you'd rather be doing on a Saturday than hunkering down inside a canvas-covered booth.
This is why the concept of absentee walk-in voting is such a godsend.
It's a blessing for busy, impatient, already-made-up-their-minds people like me.
So last Wednesday, around noonish, I drove over to the walk-in absentee polling site at Honolulu Hale, one of three such designated places on the island of Oahu.
Parking was a cinch. There were plenty of marked stalls in front of city hall, specifically reserved for the early-bird contingent.
Once inside the cavernous seat of local government, there were absolutely no crowds in sight -- just a lone poll worker directing us to some empty tables.
Comfortably seated, I filled in a short form, got out my driver's license for identification purposes, and sauntered to the back of the lobby area only to be confronted by -- drats -- a line.
Thankfully, the queue moved smoothly and quickly, and I passed the time trying to guess who in front of me would be voting for Jeremy, Mufi or Frank.
After I obtained a ballot, not one but two poll workers explained the voting procedure.
First, we were to select candidates in only one color-coded party. For example, the Republicans were in the green-shaded section, the Democrats were in tan and the Greens were NOT in green but in purple. Go figure.
Second, we could also vote in special nonpartisan races in the pink section, specifically for the offices of mayor and prosecutor, and seats on the City Council and Board of Education.
After entering the hallowed booth, it was like taking the SATs. Sadly, blackening one's oval of choice isn't nearly as satisfying as punching a hole in the ballot. WHAM! Now that was a great way to get out aggressions.
Exiting the booth, I was directed to slip my completed sheet into a hungry ballot feeder. Pau. The whole process took less than 20 minutes.
WALK-IN absentee voting continues until Thursday at Honolulu Hale and the Satellite City Hall in Windward Mall from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m., and at the Pearlridge Satellite City Hall from 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.
Just think of all the advantages of voting now rather than later:
You can do other fun or vital stuff this weekend.
No longer must you pay attention to those maddening campaign commercials on TV or small army of sign-wavers usurping the sidewalks.
You needn't worry about unforeseen circumstances keeping you from the polls on Saturday, resulting in the dreaded "other guy" winning, to your chagrin.
You free up the parking spaces and voting booths on Sept. 23 for fellow residents who, unlike yourself, can't get down to a walk-in absentee voting site by Thursday.
C'mon. Consider it a good deed. Or are you secretly thrilled at the prospect of spending this coming Saturday like you're taking the SATs?
Diane Yukihiro Chang's column runs Monday and Friday.
She can be reached by phone at 525-8607, via e-mail at
dchang@starbulletin.com, or by fax at 523-7863.