Lower Puna voters forced to relocate because of the ongoing eruption in Kīlauea’s East Rift Zone will be able to vote in the primary election at the Pāhoa Community Center on Aug. 11.

Initially, officials said voters in District Precincts 04-03 and 04-04 would vote by absentee mail ballot because of safety concerns. However, because the lava flow has claimed hundreds of homes and cut off access to hundreds more, the ACLU stepped in to demand in-person registration and voting on election day.

Hawaiʻi Island voters who normally vote in Pāhoa (District Precincts 04-03 and 04-04) will be able to vote in primary Election Day at Pāhoa Community Center. -Photo: Courtesy Honolulu Star-Advertiser

The state revised its decision and will open a dual polling site in Pāhoa on primary election day for voters who were unable to receive ballots by mail or vote at an early walk-in site. The site will be open to voters who normally vote at Pāhoa High and Elementary School, as well as those who regularly vote at the community center.

Residents who are eligible to vote but missed the deadline to register can still vote in person on election day at the polling place in the precinct connected to their residences. “As such, those whose residence is in District Precinct 04-03 or 04-04 will be eligible to register to vote and vote in person on election day at the Pāhoa Community Center, Pāhoa, Hawai‘i,” according to the Office of Elections proclamation.