Hong Kong votes in legislative election after deadly fire

HONG KONG: Hong Kong voters are casting ballots Sunday in their second legislative election since a 2021 overhaul of the system eliminated the pro-democracy opposition in the Chinese territory.

The poll, coming less than two weeks after an apartment fire that killed at least 159 people, is a possible test of public sentiment about the government's handling of the tragedy.

The focus is on voter turnout, which fell to about 30 per cent in the last election in 2021, after the overhaul dampened interest. Some analysts believe mounting public anger over government accountability in the blaze could suppress turnout further.

Turnout stood at about 20 per cent of eligible voters at 3:30 pm local time, after the polls had been open for eight hours. The polls close at 11:30 p.m.

“I'm performing my civic duty as a citizen to vote … but I'm not too certain which candidate is hardworking and which is not,” retiree Kwan Lam said outside a polling station. “I chose the one who cares for the elderly.”

City leader John Lee called on citizens to vote, saying it would send a signal on promoting reforms. He said he would put forth a proposal to the new legislature on how to support the fire survivors, many of whom have been left homeless.

Ahead of the vote, Chinese authorities called foreign media to a rare meeting to warn them that they need to comply with the city's national security laws.

Deadly blaze stalled get-out-the-vote efforts

Election campaigning was suspended after the fire and remained subdued in the final days out of respect for the victims.

Government efforts to drive up turnout, seen as a referendum on the new electoral system, had been in full swing before the blaze. Officials held candidate forums, extended voting by two hours, added polling stations and offered subsidies to older people and centres for people with disabilities to help their clients vote, along with hanging promotional banners and posters throughout the city.

Authorities arrested people who allegedly posted content that incited others not to vote or cast invalid votes.

Hong Kong's deadliest fire in decades has raised questions over government oversight and suspected bid-rigging in building maintenance projects. The 1980s-era apartment complex was undergoing renovations.

Some candidates pledged to combat bid-rigging.

Lee said last week that going ahead with the election, rather than delaying it, would better support the response to the fire.

"They have all experienced this fire and shared the pain,” he said of the city's Legislative Council. “They will certainly work with the government to promote reforms, diligently review funding, and draft relevant laws.”

Candidates are required to be Beijing loyalists

Many of the city's 4.1 million eligible voters, especially democracy supporters, have turned away from politics since a crackdown that followed massive anti-government protests in 2019.

Even before the 2021 electoral changes, only half of what had been a 70-member legislature was chosen by the general electorate.

Now, that has been reduced to 20 out of 90 seats and 40 others are chosen by a largely pro-Beijing election committee. The remaining 30 represent various groups — mainly major industries such as finance, health care and real estate — and are elected by their members.

Candidates are vetted to ensure they are patriots loyal to the central government in Beijing.

The candidate pool seems to reflect Beijing's desire to have more lawmakers who are more in tune with its agenda, some observers said, in what they see as signs of Beijing's tightening control even over its loyalists.

Lee has said that personnel changes are normal during an election. He criticised attempts to “distort” these changes to smear the new election system.

A fall in turnout would show that even some government supporters are staying away, said John Burns, an honorary professor of politics and public administration at the University of Hong Kong.

Some might want to show support for the government's response to the fire, but others might have reservations because of the high death toll and reports of systemic problems in the building maintenance industry.

“It is a reflection of public sentiment,” he said.

China warns foreign media in Hong Kong

Beijing's national security arm in Hong Kong summoned representatives of several foreign news outlets, including The Associated Press, on Saturday.

Some foreign media had spread false information and smeared the government's disaster relief efforts after the fire, as well as attacked and interfered with the legislative elections, the Office for Safeguarding National Security said in a statement.

“No media outlet may use freedom of the press' as a pretext to interfere in China's internal affairs or Hong Kong affairs,” the statement said.

Authorities have warned the general public against using the fire to try to undermine the government and have arrested at least one person on suspicion of inciting hatred against government officials.