Chief executive candidate Leung Chun-ying continues to be popular among young people and professionals while his main rival, Henry Tang Ying-yen, is backed mainly by the less educated.
Overall, Leung continues to lead all demographic categories in what is effectively a two-horse race between the two men, according to the poll of 1,001 people carried out by the University of Hong Kong's public opinion programme.
Some 61.8 per cent of those aged 18 to 29 favoured Leung, giving him a lead over Tang of 40 percentage points. But among those aged 50 or above, Tang trailed Leung by only 12.5 percentage points. Leung had 46.6 per cent support in this category.
Meanwhile, 55.9 per cent of those with tertiary education preferred Leung, with 24.1 per cent supporting Tang. Of those with at best a primary education, 40.8 per cent backed Leung, with Tang lagging by 4.2 percentage points.
Tang had the support of 30.3 per cent of those with a secondary education.
Students' support for both hopefuls edged downwards, but three times as many backed Leung as Tang - with the former having the backing of 65.3 per cent, a lead over Tang of 45.5 percentage points. Still, the gap between the two among students has narrowed. In a poll conducted between November 28 and December 1, 68.6 per cent of students backed Leung and 18.5 per cent Tang.