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Former chief secretary John Lee has been elected Hong Kong’s new chief after scoring 1,416 votes in a race wherein he was the only candidate and the one voters have been members of town’s election committee. Committee members’ solely choices on the poll have been “Help” or “Not Help”.
Lee will take workplace as town’s chief government on July 1 and serve for a five-year time period, throughout which he had mentioned he hopes to sort out difficult points together with deep-rooted housing issues and the implementation of a controversial native safety regulation.
“I’m very grateful to everybody to your assist and encouragement,” mentioned Lee on Sunday, who was joined by his spouse on stage as he addressed his supporters and Hong Kong residents on the Hong Kong Conference and Exhibition Centre — which was broadcast on numerous channels — after receiving the election consequence.
“Immediately can also be Mom’s Day, Buddha’s Birthday and Purple Cross’s World Smile Day, so we will all be very pleased and welcome such a historic day.”
The election committee went to the polls within the morning, with Lee needing 751 or extra votes to seal the deal.
Hongkongers don’t get to decide on their chief by in style vote. As an alternative, town’s chief government is elected by a committee made up of representatives of various sectors, together with politicians and members of the enterprise group, however most being Beijing loyalists.
Electoral Affairs Fee chairman Barnabas Fung mentioned 1,428 members of the election committee had solid their ballots, representing a turnout price of 97.74 %.
Lee obtained eight votes of no assist.
Fung mentioned there have been 4 invalid votes.
Lee obtained extra votes than Carrie Lam’s 777 in 2017 and Leung Chun-ying’s 689 in 2012, each of whom have been chosen by smaller election committees consisting of round 1,200 members.
There was heavy safety on the Hong Kong Conference and Exhibition Centre in Wan Chai on Sunday, the place most voters solid their ballots, to make sure that the election wouldn’t be disrupted.
Native media had reported that as many as 7,000 law enforcement officials can be mobilized throughout town for the election day.
Three members of the pro-democracy League of Social Democrats staged an indication on Sunday morning in Wan Chai close to the principle polling station, a uncommon sight after Beijing imposed the nationwide safety regulation in Hong Kong.
“Energy to the individuals, common suffrage now,” they chanted.
They have been stopped by police from marching to the constructing.
The political occasion additionally issued a press release on Fb, criticizing authorities for depriving town’s 4.47 million voters of the appropriate to vote.
Talking to reporters after the announcement of the consequence, Lee mentioned, “With loyalty and perseverance, I shall undertake this historic mission and shoulder this duty to unite and lead the 7.4 million Hong Kong individuals to start out a brand new chapter collectively.”
“Having restored order from chaos, it’s excessive time that Hong Kong begins a brand new chapter of improvement, a chapter that will probably be geared in direction of better prosperity for all,” he added.
The professional-Beijing Democratic Alliance for the Betterment and Progress of Hong Kong congratulated Lee on the consequence, including they’ve excessive hopes for the chief executive-elect to “comprehensively, precisely and firmly uphold the ‘one nation, two programs’ precept and the Primary Legislation, implement the precept of patriots governing Hong Kong, lead Hong Kong… to actively cooperate with the nation’s improvement.”
Lee faces main challenges coming into workplace, with town nonetheless deeply divided following the social unrest that enveloped Hong Kong in 2019 and 2020 sparked by a now-withdrawn controversial extradition invoice, which Lee was a serious proponent of.
Earlier than being elected town’s chief, he was the deputy commissioner of police and the secretary for security who oversaw the police’s controversial dealing with of the protests, which has led to questions on whether or not he’s appropriate to steer town right now.
Lee had responded by saying he would work to create extra alternatives for younger individuals and provides a second likelihood to these arrested in the course of the protests.
He had additionally mentioned that one in all his first priorities after taking workplace can be enacting Article 23 of the Primary Legislation, town’s mini-constitution.
Article 23 requires town to enact legal guidelines by itself to ban any act of treason, secession, sedition, and subversion in opposition to the Chinese language authorities, or theft of state secrets and techniques, to ban international political organizations or our bodies from conducting political actions within the area, and to ban political organizations or our bodies of the area from establishing ties with international political organizations or our bodies.
The federal government tried to introduce such a invoice in 2003, however it was shelved following mass protests.
Separate from the nationwide safety regulation, Article 23 additionally covers treason, theft of state secrets and techniques, and the political actions of international political our bodies in Hong Kong.
One other key coverage Lee has mentioned is shortening the average waiting time for common candidates wanting to amass a public rental flat within the metropolis
In his manifesto, he mentioned he would obtain this by exploring a brand new scheme that will enable individuals, who’re keen, to maneuver into one or two blocks of a public rental housing property earlier than all supporting services within the neighborhood are accomplished, which he mentioned would cut back wait time by a couple of 12 months.
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