HILO, Hawaii: The Hawaii State Office of Elections has made the unprecedented decision to take over Election Day operations in Hawaii County, according to a media release issued on Tuesday.

This short media release was issued before noon, following months of debate on who should oversee the process in November in light of the primary election confusion and controversy:

Hawaii Chief Election Officer Scott Nago announced today that the Office of Elections will rescind its delegation of state responsibilities to the County of Hawaii.

The state office will administer election day activities such as delivery and collection, control center and polling place operations.

“We believe that this decision best ensures a successful general election in the County of Hawaii,” Nago said. “It will allow the county to focus its resources exclusively on voter registration and absentee voting.”

This move is meant to directly address the issues of polling place communication and timely delivery of supplies to polling places. Nago emphasized that the change will be transparent to Big Island voters and poll workers.

The office has located a control center and a counting center in the Hilo State Office Building. Ballot Operations Section Head Lori Tomczyk will be the State’s lead administrator. In primary election, Tomczyk provided support for state election operations in Hilo.

We will have more on this as it develops.