The Office of Hawaiian Affairs is now accepting nominations to fill the Hawaiʻi Island Trustee vacancy.
UPDATE Feb 17, 2022, Office of Elections: OHA HAWAII RESIDENT TRUSTEE ELECTION PROCLAMATION
News Release from OHA, Feb 3, 2022
This vacancy must be filled by a Hawai‘i Island resident approved by a 2/3 vote (i.e., 6 of the remaining 8 members) of OHA’s Board of Trustees (BOT) within 60 days of the vacancy (i.e., April 2, 2022). The appointed Hawai‘i Island Trustee will serve until the general election on Nov. 8, 2022.
Interested individuals should email BOTNominee@oha.org by Wednesday, Feb. 9, 2022 at 4 p.m. with the following information:
- Full name
- Contact information: phone # and email
OHA PROCESS FOR FILLING THE HAWAI‘I ISLAND TRUSTEE VACANCY
Thursday, 2/10/22: At the public BOT meeting on 2/10/22, each OHA Trustee will nominate one qualified candidate for consideration as the replacement Hawai‘i Island Trustee. A Trustee with an excused absence may submit their nominee to the CEO in advance. Additional nominations will not be accepted after the 2/10/22 meeting unless a nominee's attestation -- that they are a resident of Hawai'i Island, eligible and registered to vote in Hawai'i, and hold no other public office -- is not received by 4:30 p.m. on Friday, 2/11/22, at which time the nominating Trustee will have an opportunity to provide a second nomination, if desired.
Following the receipt of the nominee's attestation, OHA Administration will e-mail and ask each nominee to submit the following, up to a maximum of 20 pages in total:
Wednesday, 2/16/22: Submission deadline for required materials (4:30 p.m.)
Friday, 2/18/22: The 2/24/22 BOT meeting agenda will be published with the names of the Hawai‘i Island Trustee nominees.
Monday, 2/21/22: Transmittal of the packets containing the nominees’ resumes and other materials (with personal information redacted).
Thursday, 2/24/22: Hawai‘i Island Trustee selection meeting. Candidate presentation(s), review and votes shall occur in an open session of the BOT. Nominees to present for 5 minutes, then field Trustee questions. There will be a minimum of two rounds of voting. Nominees who do not receive at least one vote in the first round will not be considered in the second round. Voting will be done by secret ballot and given to the Board’s Counsel who will announce the outcomes of each round of voting.
The new Hawai‘i Island Trustee must be approved by 6 of the 8 remaining OHA Trustees. The Hawai‘i Island Trustee approved at the 2/24/22 meeting will be seated effective 3/1/22.
In the event that a replacement is not approved on 2/24/22, Chairperson Lindsey may schedule additional votes at subsequent meetings held prior to 4/2/22.
Saturday, 4/2/22: Deadline for OHA BOT to approve a Hawai‘i Island Trustee replacement. If the OHA BOT is unable to approve a replacement by this date, Chairperson Lindsey shall notify the Governor of the need for him to fill the Hawai‘i Island Trustee vacancy by 5/2/22.
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OHA Hawaiʻi Island Trustee Keola Lindsey stepping down
News Release from OHA, Jan 31, 2022
HONOLULU (Jan. 31, 2022 ) – Office of Hawaiian Affairs Hawaiʻi Island Trustee Keola Lindsey has announced that he is vacating his position.
OHA’s Board of Trustees received a letter of resignation from Lindsey which stated that effective Feb. 1, 2022, he is leaving his position to focus on the well-being of his ʻohana.
Lindsey was elected to his first term in office in November 2020. He is a former OHA staff member who last served the agency as chief advocate before being elected trustee. He also served as OHA’s inaugural Papahānaumokuākea program manager and was elected to serve as chair by fellow co-trustees of the Papahānaumokuākea Marine National Monument Management Board.
During his time in office, Lindsey served as the vice chair of the OHA Board of Trustees’ Beneficiary Advocacy and Empowerment Committee. He also led the Board’s Permitted Interaction Group which dealt with audit reviews for the agency. Lindsey also brought attention to the need for disaster response for Native Hawaiians affected by the fires in Waimea, and he advocated for the protection of Hawaiʻiʻs natural and cultural resources.
The Board will take action in February to fill the vacancy as outlined under state law. OHA’s Board of Trustees will have 60 days to appoint a new trustee for Hawaiʻi Island, who will serve in the position until the next Hawaiʻi state general election in November 2022.
“My colleagues and I offer our heartfelt mahalo to Trustee Lindsey for his service to the lāhui and we wish nothing but the best for him and his ‘ohana,” said OHA Board Chair Carmen “Hulu” Lindsey.