Hong Kong legislative polls close amid lower voter turnout

HONG KONG (AP) - About a third of voters in Hong Kong cast their ballots Sunday in the first election since Beijing amended the laws to reduce the number of directly elected lawmakers and vet candidates to ensure that only those loyal to China can run.

The semi-autonomous territory was rocked by pro-democracy protests in 2014 and 2019 that were crushed by the security forces, followed by the imposition of a sweeping national security law that silenced most of the city's opposition activists and led others to flee abroad.

Low turnout was widely expected, with 1,309,601 registered voters, or 29.28%, casting their ballots by 9.30 p.m., an hour before polls were due to close. Final poll figures have yet to be finalized as of the early hours of Monday.

The turnout for this year's elections was vastly lower than polls in 2012 and 2016, when over 50% of registered voters cast their ballots.

Warton Leung, who did not intend to vote in Sunday's election, said that the lack of choice in candidates dampened enthusiasm for voting.

'œAlthough there is a chance to vote for pro-establishment and democracy candidates, there are few democratic choices, so Hong Kong people do not feel enthusiastic when it comes to voting,'ť he said.

Others, such as Yu Wai-kwan, saw the election as a chance to vote for a better Hong Kong.

'œI am voting to choose a new bunch of people to make Hong Kong a better place,'ť Yu said. "I am a patriot, and I just hope for peace and quiet, and to have a good livelihood.'ť

Hong Kong leader Carrie Lam visited a polling station Sunday morning and said she had 'œno particular expectation'ť about the turnout.

'œI would say that the government has not set any target for voter turnout rate, not for this election, not for previous elections, because there is a combination of factors that will affect the voter turnout rate in any election,'ť she said.

Following the close of voting, Lam issued a statement saying the 'œimproved" electoral system had worked as intended.

'œThe polls today were conducted in an open, fair and honest manner and the overall process was generally smooth," Lam's statement said.

Voting results were expected to be finalized on Monday and Lam was expected to travel to Beijing the same day to report on the outcome to central government leaders.

Three protesters from the League of Social Democrats staged a small demonstration across the street from a polling station Sunday morning, chanting 'œI want real universal suffrage.'ť

Constitutional and Mainland Affairs Minister Erick Tsang warned that foreign forces may be attempting to undermine the elections after overseas activists urged a boycott of the vote. Under the new election laws, incitement to boycott and casting invalid votes can lead up to three years in jail and a 200,000 Hong Kong dollar ($26,500) fine.

The latest survey by the Hong Kong Public Opinion Research Institute found that 39% of respondents indicated that they are unlikely to vote.

Some 4.4 million residents are eligible to vote. The elections were originally scheduled to take place in September last year, but were postponed with authorities citing public health risks due to the pandemic. The decision was opposed by the pro-democracy camp, which accused the government of using the outbreak to delay the vote.

Hong Kong's largest opposition party, the Democratic Party, fielded no candidates.

Heavy police presence surrounded polling stations Sunday. Police chief Raymond Siu said about 10,000 officers would be deployed to make sure the election proceeds smoothly.

To encourage the vote, authorities offered free public transport in an unprecedented move, and sent out reminder messages a day before the polls.

'œCasting your vote for HK - our Home! LegCo Election is important to you and HK's future!'ť the message read, referring to the Legislative Council.

The rubber-stamp Chinese parliament in March passed a resolution to alter Hong Kong's election law that many saw as effectively ending the 'œone country, two systems'ť framework under which Hong Kong was to retain its separate legal, political and financial institutions for 50 years following the handover from Britain in 1997.

The assembly voted to give a pro-Beijing committee power to appoint more of Hong Kong's lawmakers, reducing the proportion of those directly elected, and ensure that only those truly loyal to Beijing are allowed to run for office.

The move expanded the size of the chamber from 70 to 90 seats, with members of the Election Committee, a strongly pro-Beijing body responsible for electing the chief executive, making up 40 of those. Another 30 seats are elected by business groupings known as 'œfunctional constituencies.'ť The number of directly elected representatives was reduced from 35 to 20. Five seats elected from among district councilors were abolished altogether.

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AP news assistants Matthew Cheng and Janice Lo contributed to this report.