2015 Hong Kong local elections

Hong Kong local elections, 2015

22 November 2015
All Elected Constituencies 431 (of the 458) seats in all 18 Districts Councils
Leader Starry Lee Emily Lau Regina Ip Party DAB Democratic NPP/CF Alliance Pro-Beijing Pan-democracy Pro-Beijing Leader's seat To Kwa Wan North N/A N/A Last election 136 seats, 23.89% 47 seats, 17.42% 19 seats, 4.30% Current seats 121 (elected seats) 44 28 (elected seats)   FTU NTAS Leader Cheng Yiu-tong Chan Yung Priscilla Leung Party FTU NTAS KWND Alliance Pro-Beijing Pro-Beijing Pro-Beijing Leader's seat N/A N/A Whampoa East Last election 11 seats, 3.10% 2 seats, 0.19% N/A Current seats 28 (elected seats) 19 (elected seats) 17 (elected seats)   Leader Bruce Liu Andrew Leung Vincent Fang Party ADPL BPA Liberal Alliance Pan-democracy Pro-Beijing Pro-Beijing Leader's seat N/A N/A N/A Last election 15 seats, 3.85% new 14 seats, 1.98% Current seats 16 15 (elected seats) 10 (elected seats)

The 2015 Hong Kong District Council elections will be held on 22 November 2015. Elections are to be held to all 18 District Councils of Hong Kong, returning 431 members from directly elected constituencies after all appointed seats will be abolished.

Background

Boundary changes

As proposed in the Democratic Party's modified electoral reform package passed in 2010, all appointed seats will be abolished in this election. After a review on the number of elected seats for each District Council having regard to the population forecast in mid-2015, the Electoral Affairs Commission proposed to increase 19 elected seats in 9 District Councils:

1. 1 new seat for in each Tsuen Wan and North District Councils;
2. 2 new seats for each Sham Shui Po, Kowloon City, Kwun Tong, Yau Tsim Mong and Sha Tin District Councils;
3. 3 new seats for the Sai Kung District Council; and
4. 4 new seats for the Yuen Long District Council.

The total number of elected seats for the 2015 elections was increased by 19 from 412 to 431. Additionally, the boundaries of the Eastern and Wan Chai Districts was adjusted by transferring the Tin Hau and Victoria Park district council constituency areas from the Eastern District to the Wan Chai District.

Umbrella movement

Main articles: 2014 Hong Kong protests and Umbrella movement

The 2014 Hong Kong protests sparked a fierce tussle between the pan-democrats and pro-Beijing camp as the democrats hailed a "civic awakening" while pro-Beijing camp mobilised supporters to condemn the 79-day street blockade as an affront to the rule of law. The November District Council elections is to seen as the first big electoral test of the post-Occupy era. Both camps say events to come will have a bigger effect on voters, while the extent to which a political awakening among the city's youth will lead them to turn out to vote remains unclear. The pan-democrats encourage young people who participated in the Occupy movement to register and vote in the district council poll.

Contesting parties

The pro-Beijing camp dominates all 18 district councils, holding about half of the 412 directly elected seats while the Democratic Alliance for the Betterment and Progress of Hong Kong (DAB) outnumbers any other party by having 132 seats, in which 121 of them are directly elected. More than 80 are in the hands of pan-democrats in which 44 of them belong the Democratic Party. Independents hold the rest, while the councils also contain 95 ex officio or appointed members. While councils have little formal power, they will play a key role in the 2016 Legislative Council election, at which six seats go to district councillors including five so-called super seats in the District Council (Second) constituency, elected in a citywide ballot of three million voters while one through the District Council (First) elected by all District Councillors.

Many new pro-democracy groups came into exist after the Occupy movement, including the Youngspiration, the Tsz Wan Shan Constructive Power, which aimed at Wong Tai Sin District Council, the North of the Rings, which worked in Sheung Shui and Fanling in North District, the East Kowloon Community which had its eyes on Kwun Tong District Council, and some other groups. Some of them were with the "nativist" agenda and said they would not necessarily coordinate candidates with the pan-democratic parties to avoid splitting the pro-democracy vote in some constituencies.

Among the pro-Beijing camp, the two new parties, the middle-class-oriented New People's Party (NPP) and the Business and Professionals Alliance for Hong Kong (BPA) developed their forces at district level since their creations in 2011 and 2012 respectively. The New People's Party won 12 of the seats in 2011 and at least eight incumbent councillors had since joined the party, while a merger with Civil Force, a local political group with strongholds in the New Territories East, brought the number up to 30.

Current composition

As of 2 January 2020:

		Council/ Party	CW	WC	E	S	YTM	SSP	KC	WTS	KT	TW	TM	YL	N	TP	SK	ST	KWT	I	TOTAL
		Democratic	7		4	7	4	2	10	6	9	3	7	7	5			6	12	1	90
		Civic			5	1	1	4		2	4	3						7	3	2	32
		ND										2			3	4	9	1			19
		ADPL						11		3			5								19
		CST																8			8
		TCHD										1	2	4							7
		Labour			2							1	2				1	1			7
		CGPLTKO															6				6
		CM					5														5
		CA														4	1				5
		TMCN											4								4
		NWSC												1					3		4
		TSWC												4							4
		TPDA														3					3
		VSA	2	1																	3
		Civ Passion												1		1					2
		DA												2							2
		DTW										2									2
		TKOP															2				2
		LSD			1													1			2
		SKC															2				2
		TKOS															2				2
		PP								1											1
		EHK											1								1
		TYP																	1		1
		LMCG											1								1
		CSWWF						1													1
		CKWEF			1																1
		TWCN										1									1
		KEC									1										1
		SK							1												1
		CAP									1										1
		TSWLPU												1							1
		Ind & others	5	8	19	7	7	4	4	13	13	3	6	13	7	7	3	16	8	4	147
Pro-democrats			14	9	32	15	17	22	15	25	28	16	28	33	15	19	26	40	27	7	388
		DAB			1		1	2	4		6		1		1			1	3	1	21
		FTU			1						1	1	1		1						5
		Liberal	1	1	1	1			1												5
		BPA							3				1					1			5
		FPHE									2	1									3
		Roundtable											1						1		2
		Ind & others		3		1	2		2		3	2		12	5	2	5		1	10	48
Pro-Beijing			1	4	3	2	3	2	10	0	12	4	4	12	7	2	5	2	5	11	89
		Others						1				1									2
Vacant
Councillors			15	13	35	17	20	25	25	25	40	21	32	45	22	21	31	42	32	18	479

Overview

Council	Current control	Largest party
Central and Western	Pro-Beijing style="width: 2px; color:inherit; background-color: #1861AC;" data-sort-value="DABHK" |	DAB
Wan Chai	Pro-Beijing style="width: 2px; color:inherit; background-color: #1861AC;" data-sort-value="DABHK" |	DAB
Eastern	Pro-Beijing style="width: 2px; color:inherit; background-color: #1861AC;" data-sort-value="DABHK" |	DAB
Southern	Pro-Beijing style="width: 2px; color:inherit; background-color: #5FB04A;" data-sort-value="DPHK" |	Democratic
Yau Tsim Mong	Pro-Beijing style="width: 2px; color:inherit; background-color: #1861AC;" data-sort-value="DABHK" |	DAB
Sham Shui Po	Pro-Beijing style="width: 2px; color:inherit; background-color: #faf400;" data-sort-value="HKADPL" |	ADPL
Kowloon City	Pro-Beijing style="width: 2px; color:inherit; background-color: #1861AC;" data-sort-value="DABHK" |	DAB
Wong Tai Sin	Pro-Beijing style="width: 2px; color:inherit; background-color: #1861AC;" data-sort-value="DABHK" |	DAB
Kwun Tong	Pro-Beijing style="width: 2px; color:inherit; background-color: #1861AC;" data-sort-value="DABHK" |	DAB
Tsuen Wan	Pro-Beijing style="width: 2px; color:inherit; background-color: #2181FA;" data-sort-value="New Territories Association of Societies" |	NTAS
Tuen Mun	Pro-Beijing style="width: 2px; color:inherit; background-color: #1861AC;" data-sort-value="DABHK" |	DAB
Yuen Long	Pro-Beijing style="width: 2px; color:inherit; background-color: #2181FA;" data-sort-value="New Territories Association of Societies" |	NTAS
North	Pro-Beijing style="width: 2px; color:inherit; background-color: #1861AC;" data-sort-value="DABHK" |	DAB
Tai Po	Pro-Beijing style="width: 2px; color:inherit; background-color: #1861AC;" data-sort-value="DABHK" |	DAB
Sai Kung	Pro-Beijing style="width: 2px; color:inherit; background-color: #1861AC;" data-sort-value="DABHK" |	DAB
Sha Tin	Pro-Beijing style="width: 2px; color:inherit; background-color: #1C8BCD;" data-sort-value="New People's Party–Civil Force" |	NPP/CF
Kwai Tsing	Pro-Beijing style="width: 2px; color:inherit; background-color: #5FB04A;" data-sort-value="DPHK" |	Democratic
Islands	Pro-Beijing style="width: 2px; color:inherit; background-color: #1861AC;" data-sort-value="DABHK" |	DAB