Hong Kong formally confirmed John Lee as its next top leader after an uncontested election, solidifying an era of more direct Chinese political control over the once-freewheeling financial hub.
Lee won 1,416 of the 1,424 valid votes on Sunday, according to the returning officer at the election venue, the Hong Kong Convention and Exhibition Centre. That is more than the simple majority needed to confirm his appointment. Counting was completed in less than an hour, with almost 98% turnout. Eight electors voted against him, while four ballots were declared invalid.
Lee, 64, who earlier served as chief secretary for administration, the city’s No. 2 position, will start his five-year term as Chief Executive on July 1, succeeding Carrie Lam. He was the only candidate put forward to an election committee revamped by Beijing in 2021 to stack more pro-establishment members.
Sunday’s ballot was the city’s first to be held in more than two decades without at least a nominal contest. China’s political overhauls in the city last year made it all but impossible for an opposition candidate to compete and the Communist Party’s endorsement of Lee rendered his victory a fait accompli.
The choice of Lee, who served on the police force for more than three decades before joining the security ministry, epitomizes China’s focus on national security after a wave of massive and sometimes-violent democracy protests in 2019. Lee helped lead Lam’s crackdown on the demonstrations and implement a powerful Beijing-drafted national security law that’s resulted in the arrest of some 182 people and the closing of at least a dozen news organizations.
Lee appeared to be in a good mood on Sunday, greeting voters with elbow bumps or a traditional Chinese courtesy, slightly bowing with both hands clasped together. Election committee members also seemed relaxed, many of them posing for group photos.
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Immediately after the results were announced, Lee told reporters at the venue that his administration would continue to “uphold the rule of law.” “Safeguarding our country’s sovereignty, national security and development interests, protecting Hong Kong from internal and external threats and ensuring its stability will continue to be of paramount importance,” he said.
Lee has reiterated Lam’s pledge to enact additional security legislation, known as Article 23, which was shelved in 2003 after massive demonstrations. He has indicated he’ll continue Lam’s signature land development projects -- Northern Metropolis and Lantau Tomorrow -- as he attempts to tackle the city’s housing crisis, an issue that China blames for fueling public discontent.
“I will ensure a seamless transition,” said Lam, who last month announced her decision not to seek a second term. “We will render all the support needed for the assumption of office by the new term of government.”
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There was barely any dissent visible in the city with public gatherings of more than four people still banned due to Covid restrictions and critical speech heavily penalized under the National Security Law. Three activists from the League of Social Democrats protested in the Wanchai neighbourhood before being stopped about one block away from the polling venue.
Before Hong Kong's political elites pick the next city leader, 3 activists from the League of Social Democrats held a lone public protest.
“In Lee, Beijing gets its ‘designated enforcer’ who rose through the ranks of a police force and administration that oversaw the transformation of one of the freest cities in the world into one of the most repressed,” said Samuel Chu, founder and president of Washington D.C.-based The Campaign for Hong Kong.
Lee’s policy platform did not impress Tik Chi-yuen, founder of the centrist Third Side party and a election committee member. Tik told reporters on Sunday that Lee’s platform seemed “empty” and fell short of Third Side’s expectations. However, he said he’d still cast a vote for Lee in a gesture of goodwill and show that parties of different opinions can come together and solve Hong Kong’s problems.
Ronny Tong, a member of the Executive Council, said that while the election was a one-man show, it was important for the public to respect the system. He called on Lee to form a more inclusive administration with different voices, which will help Hong Kong recover from the difficulties it has faced in the last three years.
