Editorial | Time to exercise your right and vote for a better Hong Kong
- Despite the government’s all-out efforts, there are concerns that voter turnout for Sunday’s District Council may still be on the low side. But given the importance of district administration, voting is always in the city’s interest
Hong Kong goes to the polls on Sunday to return a new league of district representatives under the so-called “patriots-only” electoral principle.
This is also the second time the Beijing-imposed governance model is put to the test in a citywide ballot, after a similar revamp of the Legislative Council election drew an embarrassingly low turnout two years ago.
That is why the government has launched massive campaigns encouraging people to vote this time.
It is almost certain that the turnout will be lower than that in the last District Council election, in which the opposition swept into victory with a historic high 71.23 per cent turnout fuelled by the 2019 social unrest.
Whether Sunday’s vote can surpass the post-handover low of 30.2 per cent in the Legco polls shall be closely watched.
With 171 contenders vying for 88 places in the 44 geographical constituencies and another 228 aspirants running for 176 seats in the 18 district committee constituencies, the races are arguably still competitive to a certain extent.