Newly elected Hong Kong leader Carrie Lam vows to unite sharply divided city

Carrie Lam Cheng Yuet-ngor was elected as Hong Kong’s first ­female leader on Sunday, promising to unite a divided city with a more inclusive style of governance and appealing for the chance to start a new chapter.

The former No 2 official, who secured 777 out of the 1,186 votes cast by the Election Committee tasked to pick the next chief executive, also vowed to find ways to improve relations between the executive and the legislature.

However, opposition politicians remained sceptical, given her non-committal response to their demands for universal suffrage. They also pointed out that she was picked by a small-circle electorate despite being eclipsed in the popularity stakes by John Tsang Chun-wah, who finished a distant secondwith 365 votes.

The third candidate, retired judge Woo Kwok-hing, managed only 21 votes.