Hawaii Elections Commission accepts PIG findings and votes to order independent audit of Kauai ballot envelopes

The Hawaii State Elections Commission on Wednesday received a synopsis of a permitted‑interaction‑group (PIG) investigation into ballot handling and reconciliation on Kauai and voted to hire an independent accounting firm to audit ballot envelopes and related receipts from the 2024 general election. The PIG reported gaps in county chain‑of‑custody records, unexplained post‑election increases in the statewide ballot count, and the inability of outside reviewers to verify electronic records.

Why it matters: Commissioners and dozens of public testifiers said the findings bear on public confidence in Hawaii’s mail‑ballot system and certification practices. The commission’s vote to audit Kauai’s paper envelope trail aims to produce a verifiable paper count that can be compared with the Statewide Voter Registration System (SVRS) totals.

The PIG synopsis, read to the commission by staff presenter Lindsay Kam, summarized key findings that the PIG said make the state’s electronic results “unverifiable,” that county clerks did not provide chain‑of‑custody documentation required by HAR 3‑177‑453, and that in at least two counties the number of mail ballots recorded in SVRS exceeded the number of envelopes the counties reported collecting. Kam told the commission she moved for an independent accounting firm to be hired to “inspect and count the ballot envelopes and compare the signatures on the envelopes to the…