The Election Committee plays a “pivotal role” in implementing the principle of “patriots administering Hong Kong,” Chief Executive John Lee has said, after 21 seats on the powerful body were returned by 3,534 voters.
The subsector by-elections for the Election Committee, which is responsible for choosing the city’s leader, were conducted on Sunday in a “fair, just, honest, smooth, safe and orderly manner,” Lee said in a statement after ballot counting was completed, less than an hour before the Typhoon 8 signal was issued at 9.20pm.
The Electoral Affairs Commission (EAC) said the polls had a 97.33 per cent turnout rate.
Sunday’s polls saw 28 candidates competing for 21 seats in six subsectors – Commercial (Third), Architectural, Surveying, Planning and Landscape, Technology and Innovation, Labour, and representatives from three government-appointed committees.
All of them passed a national security vetting last month, along with 72 candidates who were automatically elected because they faced no competition in their subsector.
On Sunday evening, Lee extended his congratulations to the candidates who were elected. He said the Election Committee, comprising 1,500 members from 40 subsectors, was “broadly representative” and showcased “balanced participation.”
“It plays a pivotal role in the HKSAR’s improved electoral system and implementation of the principle of ‘patriots administering Hong Kong’,” his statement read.
Lee added that the committee would be nominating candidates who run in the “all-patriots” Legislative Council election in December and will return 40 lawmakers. Each member should “fulfil their responsibilities dutifully” and contribute to the implementation of One Country, Two Systems, he said.
Local media reported on Sunday that EAC chairperson David Lok confirmed the by-elections had received three complaints. They were related to election advertisements, polling stations and the arrangement of the polls.
The government projected in February that the polls would cost HK$233 million. When asked on Sunday about the cost of the polls, Lok said the EAC had “tried to cut costs as much as possible.”
Some expenses were “unavoidable,” Lok said, as a certain number of polling stations must be set up across the city to facilitate electors.
“When we prepare for the polls, some expenses are harder to cut. We can’t book a venue after knowing how many people would be competing; it would be too late,” he said in Cantonese.
The Election Committee gained significant powers after Hong Kong overhauled its electoral system in 2021. Its size expanded from 1,200 to 1,500 members, and it was granted new authority to nominate lawmakers and directly elect 40 out of the 90 seats in the Legislative Council. The committee is also responsible for nominating and electing the chief executive.
In March 2021, Beijing passed legislation to ensure “patriots” govern Hong Kong. The move reduced democratic representation in the legislature, tightened control of elections, and introduced a pro-Beijing vetting panel to select candidates. The Hong Kong government said the overhaul would ensure the city’s stability and prosperity, but the changes also prompted international condemnation, as they made it nearly impossible for pro-democracy candidates to stand.
