It will never be known how members of the Election Committee might have voted if they had had a chance to cast secret ballots for the next chief executive.
But as it is, in what amounts to an open election with voters having to disclose who they vote for, Donald Tsang Yam-kuen has won the support of 674 of the 796 committee members to be Hong Kong's leader for the next two years. A further 36 signed letters of support for him.
Mr Tsang's supporters include some of Hong Kong's most prominent businessmen, such as Hutchison Whampoa's Li Ka-shing, Hongkong Bank chairman Vincent Cheng Hoi-chuen, casino magnate Stanley Ho Hung-sun, Sun Hung Kai Properties' Thomas Kwok Ping-kwong, and the chairman of Orient Overseas (International), Tung Chee-chen, the brother of former chief executive Tung Chee-hwa.
Only a small number of members from the accountancy, higher education, law and medical sectors nominated Mr Tsang's rival, Democratic Party chairman Lee Wing-tat. Education was the only sector in which Mr Lee triumphed over Mr Tsang, receiving nine nominations against the latter's seven.
Cynics have used the Chinese proverb 'those who suit their actions to the times are wise' to describe the nomination process, suggesting that people bent with the wind to back the winner. In a sense, that might not be fair to Mr Tsang, as opinion polls show he is endorsed by 78 per cent of the public.
Even if the chief executive were returned by a popular vote and the opposition managed to field a stronger candidate than Mr Lee, many believe Mr Tsang, with his strong administrative experience and deft political skills, would still stand a good chance of winning.