Cushnie v. Nago

• Court: Hawaii Supreme Court
• Decided: June 17, 2026
• Docket: SCPW-26-0000424
• Status: Published

Opinion

Electronically Filed Supreme Court SCPW-XX-XXXXXXX 17-JUN-2026 07:48 AM Dkt. 18 ODDP

SCPW-XX-XXXXXXX

IN THE SUPREME COURT OF THE STATE OF HAWAIʻI ________________________________________________________________

RALPH S. CUSHNIE; TARA MALIA GREGORY; and DOUGLAS W. PASNIK, Petitioners,

vs.

SCOTT T. NAGO, in official capacity as Chief Election Officer, State of Hawaiʻi; and HAWAIʻI ELECTIONS COMMISSION, Respondents. ________________________________________________________________

ORIGINAL PROCEEDING

ORDER DENYING PETITION (By: Devens, C.J., McKenna, Eddins, and Ginoza, JJ., and Circuit Judge Cahill, assigned by reason of vacancy)

Upon consideration of the petition for writ of mandamus,

filed June 9, 2026, and the record, the petition seeks

“prospective enforcement” to compel Respondents to act in a

certain manner as to elections that have not yet occurred. We

decline to grant such relief because we do not know how the

Chief Election Officer will act when certifying the election

results for the upcoming election. See Tax Found. of Hawaiʻi v.

State, 144 Hawaiʻi 175, 190, 439 P.3d 127, 142 (2019). Also, it is the duty of the Hawaiʻi Elections Commission to

advise the Chief Election Officer on matters relating to

elections. 1 Hawaiʻi Revised Statutes § 11-7.5(7) (Supp. 2015).

An extraordinary writ is unwarranted. See Womble Bond

Dickinson (US) LLP v. Kim, 153 Hawaiʻi 307, 319, 537 P.3d 1154,

1166 (2023).

It is ordered that the petition is denied.

DATED: Honolulu, Hawaiʻi, June 17, 2026.

/s/ Vladimir P. Devens

/s/ Sabrina S. McKenna

/s/ Todd W. Eddins

/s/ Lisa M. Ginoza

/s/ Peter T. Cahill

1 Petitioner Ralph S. Cushnie is a Commissioner on the Hawaiʻi Elections Commission.