Energizing Hawaii’s young voters ahead of Midterm General Election
HONOLULU (KHON2) -- With the 2026 Midterm General Election right around the corner, youth voter engagement is top of mind in Hawaii—a state where voter turnout has been low across the board in recent years.
"I've always been in a politically engaged family, so voting was always something that we took very seriously," said University of Hawaii at Manoa senior Amelia Sofos. "My grandparents worked at the polls when we still had in-person voting across the island, so I was exposed to it from a very young age."
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Sofos was recently elected national president of the College Democrats of America. From canvassing and phone banking to fundraisers and voter registration drives, she plans to continue activating her peers.
"It's a really exciting time, especially with the midterms coming up, to be in this position and to be able to show what Hawaii leaders look like and how they can make an impact nationally," said Sofos.
The youth vote is an important issue on both sides of the aisle.
"One of the first things I did when I got involved in the party—which was only about a year ago now—I actually reached out to some high schoolers and some college students, and said, 'Hey, what are some ways that we can engage with you guys?'" shared David Hazlebeck, who serves as the District 16 Chair for the Hawaii Republican Party and is running to represent that same House District.
Hazlebeck said he's seen some success by taking advantage of social media and hosting lower-profile events like beach barbecues.
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However, it has proven difficult to actually get people to show up to the polls, or even return their ballots.
In Hawaii's 2026 Primary Election, only 281,214 of the 846,543 registered voters cast their ballots.
That's just 33.2%.
Of those voters, State of Hawaii Chief Election Officer Scott Nago explained that "the highest turnout would be in the 55+ age group. The lowest would be in the youth."
Still, as ballots start to arrive by Oct. 16, there's a chance for that to change.
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