Hong Kong chief executive candidate Carrie Lam gets enough votes on paper to win election

But popular underdog John Tsang is still hoping to turn the tables through Election Committee members switching support in the secret ballot

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The election centre is prepared for the chief executive poll on Sunday. Photo: Felix Wong

Published: 10:45pm, 25 Mar 2017Updated: 10:42am, 26 Mar 2017

Front runner Carrie Lam Cheng Yuet-ngor looks assured of winning Hong Kong’s leadership election – on paper – having secured about 750 ballots from the 1,194-member committee tasked to vote for the city’s next chief executive on Sunday.

Lam’s expected victory, however, still depends on how many voters switch support to her popular arch-rival, John Tsang Chun-wah, in the secret ballot. The former financial secretary was not mentioned by name, but the meaning was clear when outgoing chief executive Leung Chun-ying warned on Saturday that Hong Kong would lose its high degree of autonomy if his successor lacked Beijing’s full trust.

With Lam, seen as Beijing’s preferred candidate, trailing Tsang in the popularity stakes, her critics have warned of a governance crisis if she is elected.

The former chief secretary received a further boost on Saturday from voters in the Election Committee’s financial services subsector, whose 18 members – including two who earlier nominated Tsang – pledged their full support in Sunday’s vote.

Watch: The chief executive candidates in their own words

Late on Saturday, Lam looked set to secure some 750 votes, counting the 580 people who had initially backed her and her later additional support from Beijing loyalists.

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