‘Critical situation’ for election candidate as pan-democrat rival looks to upset the odds in Hong Kong
Former lawmaker Tony Tse – seen from the beginning as the front-runner – declared his campaign was in a ‘state of emergency’ by the afternoon
Despite attracting less public attention, a turnout rate similar to that for the 2016 election was being recorded in the architectural and surveying functional constituency on Sunday with all eyes on whether a pro-democracy candidate could upset the odds and beat his strong pro-establishment rival.
As of 9.30pm, almost 66 per cent of voters – or 5,028 out of 7,619 registered voters – in the Architectural, Surveying, Planning and Landscape sector had cast their votes, just 3.9 percentage points lower than at the same time in the 2016 Legislative Council election. The polls close at 10.30pm.
Former pro-establishment lawmaker Tony Tse Wai-chuen – seen from the beginning as the front-runner – declared his campaign was in a “state of emergency” by 3pm.
Frantic candidates issue ‘emergency’ appeals to mobilise voters in Hong Kong by-election
“My situation is very critical as there is a very high chance of my opponent winning,” said Tse, referring to Southern district councillor Paul Zimmerman, the candidate endorsed by the pro-democracy bloc.