Update | John Tsang, Woo Kwok-hing reach magic 150 nominations in Hong Kong chief executive race
Ex-finance chief first to submit his nominations while ex-judge exceeds 150 with pan-democrat backing; Carrie Lam to make her move later this week
Critics say Tsang, who enjoys higher support in opinion polls, has only a slim chance of winning as he secured little backing from the pro-establishment camp, bagging just 10 of his 160 nominees from that sector.
An aspirant needs 150 nominations from the 1,194-member Election Committee to qualify, and at least 601 votes to win.
Tsang, who almost lost his footing on the way to the electoral office on Saturday, declined to give a breakdown of his supporters from the pan-democrat and pro-government camps.
“All along I don’t want to draw a line like this because it would further divide Hong Kong,” Tsang said. “That’s not desirable.”
Watch: John Tsang meets the press after submitting nominations
The electoral office said Madam Justice Carlye Chu Fun-ling was processing the nominations and would determine their validity in accordance with the law.
The pan-democrat camp, which holds 326, or a quarter of the seats on the committee, handed Tsang 125 nominations.
Among Tsang’s 10 pro-establishment nominees are Thomas Jefferson Wu, a second-generation tycoon and managing director of Hopewell Holdings; Liberal Party leaders James Tien Pei-chun, Selina Chow Liang Shuk-yee and Felix Chung Kwok-pan; financier Ricky Chim kim-lun and Hong Kong Securities Association vice-chairman Tsui Luen-on.
The remaining 25 do not have a strong political leaning, such as film director Derek Yee Tung-sing, two businessmen from the textile and garment sector and five from the Catholic and Protestant sectors.
Lau Siu-kai, vice-president of the Chinese Association of Hong Kong and Macau Studies, a semi-official think-tank based in Beijing, said it was hard for Tsang to acquire support from the pro-Beijing camp because Lam was believed to be favoured by Beijing.
Tsang’s reliance on pan-democrats would inevitably affect his relationship with the central government, Lau added.
A source from Tsang’s campaign told the Post that the former finance chief decided to submit his bid immediately after meeting the threshold “so those pro-establishment nominees would not be lobbied to turn to the other side”. Critics say Beijing’s liaison office in the city has been lobbying support for Lam.
“Another reason for the quick submission is that Tsang had agreed to coordinate with the pan-democrats, who want to use their remaining nominations to field Woo in the game,” the source added. “It’s not that Tsang likes to have one more rival but that’s the agreement.”
In the afternoon, the pan-democrats handed 47 nominations to Woo after a discussion, bringing the retired judge’s total number of tickets to 156.
Receiving the forms, Woo said it was “his happiest moment” since he declared his candidacy and he would strive to bring democracy to Hong Kong.
One of her supporters, district councillor Raymond Ho Man-kit, was first in line outside the electoral office to check Tsang’s nominees, arriving before reporters. Ho claimed he came in his personal capacity but did not deny he was a member of Lam’s campaign office.
“All along I don’t think the democratic camp should vote for any establishment candidates,” Leung said. “What we fought for in [Occupy] should not be forgotten in any election.”
Additional reporting by Emily Tsang
Total number of nominations secured by John Tsang: 160
How the numbers add up:
Pan-democrats: 125
Non-politicians from alliance Democrats 300+, mostly in the 10 professional sectors including accountancy, education, information technology and medical
Seven Democratic Party lawmakers
Those with a clear pro-establishment background: 10
Thomas Jefferson Wu, managing director of Hopewell Holdings (hotels)
James Tien Pei-chun, Liberal Party honorary chairman (commercial)
Selina Chow Leung Shuk-yee, Liberal Party chairwoman (retail)
Felix Chung Kwok-pan, Liberal Party leader
Ricky Chim kim-lun, financier (financial services)
Tsui Luen-on, vice-chairman of the Hong Kong Securities Association (financial services)
Ronnie Ho Pak-ting, former chairman of the Travel Industry Council (tourism)
Three accountants, including Ronald Kung Yiu-fai, who do not support Leung Chun-ying
Others: 25
The list includes:
Derek Yee Tung-sing, film director (performing arts)
Chen Tong-sang (textile and garment)
Banny Yu Yuen-mau (textile and garment)
Jason Shum Jiu-sang (tourism)
Three members from the Hong Kong Christian Council subsector
Two members from the Catholic Diocese of Hong Kong subsector
Choi Kin, Medical Association president (medical)