The Clean Elections Hawaiʻi Coalition is urging lawmakers to restore public trust after an “influential state legislator” allegedly accepted $35,000 in 2022.
The group is asking for an impartial, independent special prosecutor to look into pay-to-play donations within the state. The state Attorney General’s Office has its own ongoing investigation of the alleged $35,000 exchange, but some elections advocates like Common Cause Hawaiʻi Program Manager Camron Hurt say this internal investigation is not satisfactory.
“We are currently operating in a trust deficit, so our call for a special investigator is not (against) anybody’s one ability or how they execute their job, but it is to prevent the appearance of impropriety throughout this investigation,” Hurt said. “The people have questions, and they are right to have them. It is time for people to step out of their egos and do what is best for the state.”…