In Hong Kong, a special administrative region of China, elections are not held to form a government. But universal-suffrage-based elections, which are held every two years in geographical constituencies to elect members of the Legislative Council (LegCo) and district councils, give residents ample opportunity to choose their representatives and voice their preferences.
Their choices provide useful pointers of popular opinion for the SAR government’s deliberation. The turnout rate of 31.9 percent of the recently concluded LegCo election beat expectations of a more lackluster outcome, under the shadow of the collective agony over the tragic fire that broke out in Tai Po last month. The 51 candidates who took part in the geographical elections ran energetic campaigns to interact with voters and pledged vigorous reforms. Their tireless efforts, coupled with the special arrangements made by the government to facilitate voting, pushed turnout to a higher level than that achieved in 2021.
Western critics who decry the turnout of Hong Kong’s elections are misguided in benchmarking its electoral system against those practiced in Western democracies. Western-style liberal democracy has not worked well (to put it mildly) and is not practiced in Hong Kong. What we now have is a revamped democratic system founded on China’s concept of “whole-process people’s democracy”, with more emphasis on outcomes than process, and on daily, down-to-earth services to the people rather than extravagant promises made during electoral campaigns. The two-party system in the United States, and the more pluralistic multiparty system in Europe, are exhibiting troubling signs of putting party interests above those of the nation, as well as weak governance and inability to enact the necessary reform.
... Geographical elections in Hong Kong exhibit none of the hate-filled, adversarial politics that have led to frequent shutdowns of public services, as in the US, or the empty, bombastic talk of many populist Western leaders. The great majority of the candidates in the geographical constituencies have served as district councilors
In contrast, geographical elections in Hong Kong exhibit none of the hate-filled, adversarial politics that have led to frequent shutdowns of public services, as in the US, or the empty, bombastic talk of many populist Western leaders. The great majority of the candidates in the geographical constituencies have served as district councilors. Even in the Election Committee constituency, three of the top 10 vote-getters, Michael Lee Chun-keung, Ben Chan Han-pan, and Elizabeth Quat Pei-fan, had served as district councilors. Their common priorities are to boost economic growth and improve the livelihoods of the people. Following their election, serving and incoming legislators from all three constituencies — Election Committee, functional, and geographical — spoke with one voice to pledge support for the government to help victims of the tragic Tai Po fire and institute reform.
The polling outcomes provide interesting telltale signs of public opinion. The largest party, the Democratic Alliance for the Betterment and Progress of Hong Kong (DAB), fielded the most candidates (13) in the geographical elections, but suffered a sharp loss of almost a quarter of a million votes, representing a substantial decline of 36 percent compared to the votes scored in 2021. This is believed to be partly due to the close involvement of one of their district councilors in the work of the owners’ corporation of Wang Fuk Court in Tai Po. But it could also signal flagging enthusiasm for the policy platforms and tactics of the largest party, which the leader of DAB, Gary Chan Hak-kan, has pledged to review.
Voters’ desire to steer away from one-party dominance is corroborated by the surprisingly strong wins of independent candidates with no previous track record of serving in LegCo. Christine Fong Kwok-shan, who succeeded on her sixth attempt at a LegCo seat, scored 58,828 votes, an overwhelming 42.26 percent of total votes cast in the New Territories South East constituency, crowning her as the highest vote-getter among women candidates. Fong, an actress-turned politician nicknamed Ne Zha after the rebellious folkloric hero, gained a reputation for bold, dramatic protest tactics when she served as a district councilor. Likewise, Mark Chong Ho-fung, from Roundtable founded by retiring Legislative Councilor Michael Tien Puk-sun, captured 34,756 votes in the New Territories North West constituency, representing a formidable 25.15 percent of total votes. Chong was backed by Tien, who is well-known for his outspoken style, and his frequent criticism of the performance of the government and the Mass Transit Railway Corp.
The New People’s Party (NPP) fielded seven candidates in geographical elections. Even though the NPP achieved only two wins, Dominic Lee Tsz-king edged out DAB leader Gary Chan in the New Territories North East constituency. Another winner, Judy Chan Ka-pui, trailed top winner Chan Hok-fung by a few hundred votes in the Hong Kong Island West constituency. All the candidates in the five other constituencies in Hong Kong Island and the New Territories have no experience of running in LegCo elections and most have no base in their constituencies. Yet even though they failed to win seats, together they bagged 74,331 votes. The NPP chalked up 147,113 votes, or 11 percent of the total, rendering it the third-highest vote-getter after the DAB and the Federation of Trade Unions.
The polling outcomes show that among patriots, a healthy force is taking shape — balancing the distribution of power between political parties and groupings, and providing healthy checks on the performance of the government. These developments augur well for Hong Kong’s future
The polling outcomes signal strong support of middle-class voters for candidates willing to speak up and hold the government to account, particularly in the wake of the Tai Po disaster. Christine Fong’s strong showing in Lohas Park, the large well-to-do housing estate in south Tseung Kwan O, is clear evidence of middle class wishes for checks and balances within the pro-government camp.
The recently concluded LegCo election was extremely meaningful beyond the respectable 31.9 percent turnout rate. Retiring veterans proved their ability to develop young political talent and foster generational change, a hallmark of a healthy political system. As the second election held under the reinforced “patriots only” electoral system, they have proved their value in returning candidates who are committed to supporting the “one country, two systems” framework, and who are competent and well connected with the people. As Ji Pengfei, then head of the Hong Kong and Macao Office of the State Council, enunciated in the National People’s Congress on April 4, 1990, during the enactment of Hong Kong’s Basic Law, the executive and the legislative branches should cooperate with each other while providing checks and balances. The polling outcomes show that among patriots, a healthy force is taking shape — balancing the distribution of power between political parties and groupings, and providing healthy checks on the performance of the government. These developments augur well for Hong Kong’s future.
The author is convenor of the Executive Council of Hong Kong Special Administrative Region and a legislator.
The views do not necessarily reflect those of China Daily.
