The first vote was cast yesterday for Election Committee nominees and the first voter said it was also a vote for universal suffrage.
Balloting began for the seven Election Committee positions reserved for Christians. Every church-goer in the city is entitled to cast their ballot.
One of the contenders, Joe Yau Cho-ki, running for the Christian Alliance for Democracy, was the first to vote.
'This is a kick-off not just for our team, but for universal suffrage for Hong Kong as a whole,' said Mr Yau, a computer science lecturer at Baptist University, as he cast his vote at the North Point Alliance Church.
Mr Yau is one of five candidates the Christian alliance is fielding. They are among 27 vying for the seven Election Committee seats reserved for the Hong Kong Christian Council. Results will be known later today, with about 20,000 church-goers expected to vote during the two-day ballot.
Mr Yau said the voting was important for the city's Christians.