Hawaii held its general election on November 8, 2016, deciding 65 legislative seats. No chamber changed party control.
Highlights
- Republicans lost their only Senate seat, making Hawaii's Senate the nation's only all-Democratic one, and Democrats widened their House majority to 45-6.
- Stanley Chang (D) unseated five-term Sen. Sam Slom (R) by about 6 points in East Honolulu's Senate District 9. Chang, a 34-year-old Harvard Law graduate, said he knocked thousands of doors.
- On the North Shore, Sean Quinlan (D) narrowly ousted Rep. Feki Pouha (R) by about 110 votes in House District 47. The other House seat that changed party came from a party switch: Aaron Ling Johanson (D), then the House minority leader, left the Republican Party in December 2014 and won House District 31 as a Democrat by about 40 points.
- In 26 of the 65 legislative races, only one candidate was on the ballot.
- Voters approved Amendment 2, which lets the state put surplus general-fund revenue toward pension liabilities and debt, and rejected Amendment 1, which would have raised the dollar threshold for a civil jury trial. Amendment 1 failed even though yes outpolled no: Hawaii requires yes votes from at least half of all ballots cast, so blank ballots count against an amendment.
Legislature
- House (51 seats): 44 D, 7 R before the election, 45 D, 6 R after; control stayed with Democrats.
- Senate (25 seats): 24 D, 1 R before the election, 25 D, 0 R after; control stayed with Democrats.
Legislative races
Ballot measures
| Measure | Description | Result |
|---|---|---|
| Amendment 1 | Increases the threshold value in controversy requirement for jury trials | Failed (52.02% yes) |
| Amendment 2 | Add alternatives for the disposition of excess general fund revenues | Passed (58.21% yes) |