Fight club: Hong Kong Election Committee members strategise to sweep 40 seats for ‘patriot’ lawmakers
- Former city leaders Tung Chee-hwa, Leung Chun-ying among likely candidates for chief convenor of powerful committee
- Pro-establishment parties go all out to get members in as lawmakers via Election Committee route
Different camps are hoping to sweep the most positions available, angling to be among the 40 lawmakers who can represent the Election Committee in the legislature, now expanded from 70 to 90 seats.
Nominations for December’s Legco election will be held over two weeks from October 31, and pro-establishment parties are hoping to snag the biggest slice of the pie.
This new political role of the Election Committee comes also with the responsibility to act as the gatekeeper on aspiring candidates who must secure at least 10 nominations from its members before they can apply to contest the polls.
The stakes have never been higher for the committee, with its new, vast powers and the presence it can command in Legco, acting both as a pro-Beijing voice and a check on the local government.
While it remains to be seen how these roles will play out, the lobbying for seats now gathering pace signals how seriously the process is being taken.
