Honolulu council term‑limit dispute

In late July 2026 a Honolulu circuit court judge ruled that City Council Chair Tommy Waters was ineligible to seek a third consecutive term, interpreting his initial, delayed swearing‑in as a full term under the charter’s two‑term limit. The decision came just weeks before the August 8 primary, where Waters’ name already appeared on the ballot alongside Trevor Ozawa, Tara Malia Gregory and Jason Liang, raising questions about how any votes for him would be handled.

A few days later the ruling was upheld by the city’s Elections Division. Although Waters’ name remained on the printed ballots, votes cast for him would be excluded from determining the council seat winner; they would only be used to assess whether an eligible candidate achieved a majority. The division explained that Hawaii law prevented reissuing ballots, and that if no candidate secured a majority, the top two would advance to the November general election. The episode underscored strict enforcement of Honolulu’s term‑limit provisions and highlighted procedural constraints when a disqualification occurs after ballots have been printed.