Chief Executive Leung Chun-ying’s approval rating has dropped to an all-time low, according to poll results released on Tuesday.
The Hong Kong University Public Opinion Programme (HKUPOP) found Leung’s rating to be at 37.5 points, the lowest since he took office in 2012. This is lower than the 38.9 rating he received during the beginning of the pro-democracy Occupy protests in October 2014.
His net approval rate also fell, with 66 per cent disapproving and 22 per cent approving, giving him a net popularity of -44. One month ago, in mid-December 2015, Leung had an approval rating of 41.8 and a net popularity of -39.
Only Hong Kong’s first chief executive Tung Chee-hwa has scored a lower rating.
Chief Secretary Carrie Lam’s rating also hit a record low of 52.1, with a net popularity of -22. Both are her lowest since taking office.
CY Leung will deliver his annual Policy Address on Wednesday. The last one of the term, it will be Leung’s final chance to offer policy initiatives and boost his popularity.
Leung remarked in March 2015 that he had “not rule[d] out any possibility” regarding whether he would seek a second term. Returning from a trip to the Chinese capital three months later, he said that Beijing was “very satisfied” with his performance.
HKUPOP interviewed 1,103 people by landline between 4 and 6 January 2016. The maximum sampling error of approval and disapproval ratings was +/-4 percentage points at 95 percent confidence level.
