The People Will Decide

Mayor Mufi Hannemann indicated yesterday that he will not veto a bill passed by the Honolulu City Council that will allow a vote on the controversial $6.4 billion rail issue. The City Council passed a measure that will allow their own ballot question on the rail issue to appear this November. Stop Rail Now's ballot initiative petitions were accepted by the City Clerk last week after a Circuit Court Judge forced the clerk to accept them.

The Stop Rail Now petitions are currently being certified by the City Clerk's office, though issues still remain on whether the number of valid signatures should be based on 10% of the total votes cast in the last Mayoral election (2004) or the total amount of voters registered that year. That issue may have to go to the Supreme Court.

If Stop Rail Now's ballot initiative is approved, the voters will go with the Stop Rail Now ballot question. If their initiative is not approved, then the version passed out by the City Council will appear on the November ballot.

Whatever the outcome, the voters will get the final say on whether or not a rail system will be built for Honolulu. And that is a good thing. Time to Stop Rail Now in November!



Stop Rail Now will have to refocus their anti-rail campaign to a public awareness and advertising drive in order to educate and persuade the voters to stop the rail project through the upcoming charter amendment vote. Photo by Mel, Copyright 2008, All rights reserved.