2017 Hong Kong Chief Executive election

Hong Kong Chief Executive election, 2017

26 March 2017
All 1,200 votes of the Election Committee (actually 1,194 members) 601 votes needed to win
Opinion polls
Nominee John Tsang Carrie Lam Party Nonpartisan Nonpartisan Alliance Pro-Beijing Pro-Beijing   Nominee Woo Kwok-hing Regina Ip Party Nonpartisan NPP Alliance N/A Pro-Beijing
Incumbent Chief Executive Leung Chun-ying Nonpartisan

The 2017 Hong Kong Chief Executive election is scheduled on 26 March 2017 for the 5th term of the Chief Executive of Hong Kong (CE), the highest office of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (HKSAR). After the government's controversial constitutional reform proposal being rejected by the Legislative Council of Hong Kong (LegCo), in the wake of a series of controversies and massive Occupy protests, the selecting method of the 2017 Chief Executive would remain chosen by the 1,200-member Election Committee (EC).

Retired judge Woo Kwok-hing became the first to announce his candidacy in October 2016, followed by Executive and Legislative Councillor and New People's Party chairwoman Regina Ip on 15 December, after incumbent Chief Executive Leung Chun-ying announced he would not seek re-election, becoming the first Chief Executive who would serve only one term. Chief Secretary Carrie Lam and Financial Secretary John Tsang, both have resigned from their posts, formally announced their candidacy on 16 and 19 January respectively.

Background

Further information: Leung Chun-ying as Chief Executive of Hong Kong, 2014–15 Hong Kong electoral reform, and 2014 Hong Kong protests

The highest office of Hong Kong, the Chief Executive, is currently elected by a 1,200-member Election Committee (EC) which is divided by various subsectors and dominated by the pro-Beijing politicians and tycoons. Since the Article 45 of the Basic Law of Hong Kong states the "ultimate aim is the selection of the Chief Executive by universal suffrage upon nomination by a broadly representative nominating committee in accordance with democratic procedures", the progress to universal suffrage has been the dominant issue in Hong Kong politics since the transfer of sovereignty in 1997, in which the pan-democracy camp has demanded the full implementation of Article 45. In 2004 the National People's Congress Standing Committee (NPCSC) ruled out universal suffrage in the 2012 Chief Executive election, but in 2007 ruled that the 2017 Chief Executive election "may be implemented by the method of universal suffrage".

During he constitutional reform debate for the 2017 Chief Executive election, the NPCSC on 31 August 2014 imposed the standard that "the Chief Executive shall be a person who loves the country and loves Hong Kong" and be nominated by a nominating committee, mirroring the present Election Committee, to nominate two to three candidates, each of whom must receive the support of more than half of the members of the nominating committee. The pan-democrats viewed the restrictive nominating process as a violation of international standards of free elections, as candidates unsupportive of the central government would likely be screened out. The NPCSC decision triggered a class boycott in Hong Kong which escalated into a unprecedented 79-day large-scale occupy movement, which is internationally known as the "Umbrella Revolution".

On 18 June 2015, the Legislative Council rejected the electoral reform proposal 28 to 8 votes with 33 principally pro-Beijing legislators controversially absent, which meant the selecting method of the 2017 Chief Executive would remain chosen by the 1,200-member Election Committee.

Candidates

Announced

Candidate			Born	Party	Most recent position	Campaign	Nominations received
bgcolor=Template:Nonpartisan/meta/color|		Woo Kwok-hing 胡國興	13 January 1946 (age 78)	Nonpartisan (Non-aligned)	Deputy Judge of the Court of First Instance of the High Court (2016)	Announced: 27 October 2016	TBD
bgcolor=Template:NPPHK/meta/color|		Regina Ip 葉劉淑儀	24 August 1950 (age 73)	New People's Party (Pro-Beijing)	Member of the Legislative Council and New People's Party Chairwoman (2008–present, 2011–present)	Announced: 15 December 2016	TBD
bgcolor=Template:Nonpartisan/meta/color|		Carrie Lam 林鄭月娥	13 May 1957 (age 67)	Nonpartisan (Pro-Beijing)	Chief Secretary for Administration (2012–2017)	Announced: 16 January 2017	TBD
bgcolor=Template:Nonpartisan/meta/color|		John Tsang 曾俊華	21 April 1951 (age 73)	Nonpartisan (Pro-Beijing)	Financial Secretary (2007–2017)	File:John Tsang 2017 CE logo.svg Announced: 19 January 2017	TBD

Other minor candidates included ex-DAB member Wu Sai-chuen.

Publicly expressed interest

• Leung Kwok-hung, former chairman of League of Social Democrats and member of Legislative Council
• Jasper Tsang Yok-sing, former President of Legislative Council

• 
  Legislative Councillor
  Leung Kwok-hung
• 
  Former Legislative Council President
  Jasper Tsang

Other potential candidates

Individuals listed below have been mentioned as potential 2017 Chief Executive candidates in at least two reliable media sources.

• Norman Chan Tak-lam, Chief Executive of the Hong Kong Monetary Authority
• Antony Leung Kam-chung, businessman and former Financial Secretary

• Chief Executive of HKMA Norman Chan
  Chief Executive of HKMA
  Norman Chan
• 
  Former Financial Secretary
  Antony Leung

Declined

• Bernard Charnwut Chan, businessman and member of the Executive Council
• Margaret Chan Fung Fu-chun, director-general of the World Health Organization
• Audrey Eu Yuet-mee, former chairwoman of the Civic Party and former member of Legislative Council
• Emily Lau Wai-hing, former chairwoman of Democratic Party and member of Legislative Council
• Starry Lee Wai-king, chairwoman of Democratic Alliance for the Betterment and Progress of Hong Kong (DAB) and member of Legislative Council
• Leung Chun-ying, incumbent Chief Executive of Hong Kong
• Arthur Li Kwok-cheung, chairman of the Council of the University of Hong Kong
• Frederick Ma Si-hang, chairman of the MTR Corporation
• Henry Tang Ying-yen, former Chief Secretary for Administration and Chief Executive candidate in 2012
• James Tien Pei-chun, honorary chairman of Liberal Party and former member of Legislative Council
• Peter Woo Kwong-ching, former chairman of Wharf Holdings and Chief Executive candidate in 1996

Pre-nomination events

October 2016: Emergence of potential candidates

Retired judge Woo Kwok-hing became the first candidate to declare his campaign on 27 October 2016.

The Chief Executive race started as early on 27 October 2016 when retired judge Woo Kwok-hing became the first candidate to declare his campaign. He launched an offensive campaign against incumbent Chief Executive Leung Chun-ying, questioning his achievements during his term while Woo himself was questioned for his lack of experience in public administration.

Around the same time, New People's Party chairwoman Regina Ip, a 2012 candidate but did not receive enough nominations, expressed her interest in running in the election for the second time. She criticised the potential candidate, Financial Secretary John Tsang for not doing much in the last decade. Tsang responded by saying that "if one can be idle at it for 10 years, [he] has quite a bit of talent." He refused to response if he would run, only said it was "heaven’s secret". Leung Chun-ying, who was exepcted to seek for second term, also unleashed a thinly-veiled attack on Tsang, suggesting ministers should be "responsible" and focus on the upcoming policy address and budget rather than thinking about joining the race. Leung also argued that "will those pushing for the city’s independence stop what they are doing? Will those insulting their own country shut up?", referring to the Legislative Council oath-taking controversy. He went on by asking "will the land and housing problems that have accumulated become easier to solve under a new leader or government? Will the cabinet continue to touch on vested interests in the property market with courage and determination, and amid difficulties, to solve the housing problems?"

November to December 2016: Pro-democrats' ABC campaign

Further information: Hong Kong Election Committee Subsector elections, 2016

Incumbent Chief Executive Leung Chun-ying announced he would not seek re-election on 9 December 2016.

The pro-democrat professionals and activists formed a loose coalition called "Democrats 300+" hoping to snatch over 300 seats in the Election Committee Subsector elections based on the common platform of opposing Leung Chun-ying's second term, many of whom with the slogan of "ABC" (Anyone but CY). The camp tended not to send a candidate in the election and boost the chance for an alternative establishment candidate. On 9 December, two days before the election, Leung surprisingly announced he would not seek re-election, citing his daughter's ill health, which made him the first Chief Executive who would serve only one term. After Leung's announcement, Chief Secretary for Administration Carrie Lam, previously said she would retire, expressed she would have to reconsider running for Chief Executive in order to continue Leung's policies.

Despite Leung's announcement, the pro-democrats were still able to win record 325 out of 1,200 seats in the Election Committee election, more a quarter of seats with a surge of the turnout nearly 20 percentage points higher than that in the last committee election in 2011. After the election, the two potential candidates, John Tsang and Regina Ip, resigned from their Financial Secretary and Executive Councillor posts on 12 and 15 December respectively, being expected to run.

On 14 December, Woo Kwok-hing became the first one to unveil his electoral platform under the slogan of "Righteous heart, righteous way, revert Hong Kong back to right track". He proposed to expand the electorate base for choosing the Election Committee from the current 250,000 to one million in 2022, rising to three million by 2032 and eventually quasi-universal suffrage. His attendees included Andy Ho On-tat, former information coordinator during Donald Tsang administration from 2006 to 2012.

Regina Ip received the New People's Party's endorsement on 14 December and resigned from the Executive Council on the next day. She announced her candidacy on 15 December under the campaign slogan "Win back Hong Kong", the one she used in her 2016 Legislative Council campaign. She called for a relaunch of the electoral reform process under Beijing’s restrictive framework as decreed by the National People's Congress Standing Committee (NPCSC) on 31 August 2014. She also pledged to enact controversial Basic Law Article 23 with "suitable measures". Her campaign launching rally was attended by former colonial Chief Secretary Sir David Akers-Jones and businessman Allan Zeman as special advisers to Ip’s campaign office.

In late December, Wang Guangya, director of the Hong Kong and Macau Affairs Office, laid out four basic criteria for the next Chief Executive in an interview with a pro-Beijing magazine: who love China, love Hong Kong, who Beijing can trust, who are capable of governing and supported by the Hong Kong people, in that order.

Mid January 2017: Carrie Lam and John Tsang enter the race

Former Chief Secretary for Administration Carrie Lam announced her candidacy on 16 January 2017 being seen as Beijing's preferred choice.

On 12 January 2017, Carrie Lam resigned from her Chief Secretary post and announced her plan to run for Chief Executive if her resignation was approved. On 16 January, the two Secretaries' resignations were simultaneously approved by the central government, despite Tsang handed in his resignation on 12 December, while Lam only four days earlier on 12 January. Some pro-Beijing politicians saw this as a signal that Lam was the central government’s favoured candidate. Lam officially declared her candidacy on the same day, promising good governance with greater transparency and "new blood" in her cabinet. The press conference was hosted alongside Executive Councillor Bernard Chan, director of Lam's campaign office. The chairmen’s committee of the campaign office was also composed of heavyweights, such as former Hong Kong Stock Exchange chairman Ronald Arculli.

As Lam declared her candidacy and Tsang was expected to run, political analysts said that could endanger Regina Ip's chances of getting the minimum 150 nominations to enter the race. Ip revealed that two or three electors, including Allan Zeman, have turned their backs on her to support Lam. She got emotional and tear-eyed in a media gathering on 17 January, "[i]n the past ten years I started from nothing, working hard bit by bit, splashing out my own money, putting in much mental and physical effort," Ip said as her voice shook. "Can you say I had not taken on responsibilities for the Hong Kong society? When I handled Article 23, I did not perform satisfactorily?" she defended herself, "I have taken responsibility under the accountability system and have already apologised multiple times. I was not shameless, I did not hold onto my powers. I stepped down from the administration...I definitely have taken on a lot of responsibilities." Ip's remarks came after Leung Chun-ying praised Lam for her "ability and willingness to take on responsibilities".

Former Financial Secretary John Tsang launched his campaign on 19 January 2017 after his long-waited resignation was approved by the central government.

John Tsang officially declared his candidacy on 19 January with a slogan of "Trust, Unity, Hope", after more than a month-long pending of his resignation by the central government which put his campaign in limbo. To contrast Lam who was perceived to follow Leung Chun-ying's hardline and divisive policies, Tsang described himself as a good listener and accept different views. He appealed to "all 7.35 million Hongkongers so that together we can make Hong Kong a better place." Retired senior civil servant former Permanent Secretary for the Civil Service Rebecca Lai Ko Wing-yee and former Permanent Secretary for Food and Health Sandra Lee Suk-yee became director and officer of Tsang's campaign office respectively, despite a number of his supporters switching to Lam’s camp amid reports suggesting he failed to get endorsement from Beijing. Tsang also launched his election Facebook page, which drew more than 100,000 likes in a day.

In a close-door meeting with senior media executives on 20 January, Lam reportedly said she decided to run to prevent the election would be won by someone not accepted by Beijing which would cause "constitutional crisis". Woo Kwok-hing criticised Lam for using a "despicable tactic" to attack her opponents. Lam's campaign office later clarified that Lam was only making a general comment without targeting anybody in particular. She was also criticised for being out of touch with ordinary people after she appeared unfamiliar with how to use an Octopus card to pass through a turnstile when she took the MTR and did not know convenience store does not sell toilet paper and had to take a cab back to her former official residence to get one, which was dubbed "loo paper-gate" by English media. She was further under criticism for being ignorant after giving HK$500 to an illegal beggar who was allegedly "trafficked" from China.

Meanwhile, incumbent Chief Executive Leung Chun-ying criticised John Tsang's slogan of "respite and recuperate", stating that if it would be harmful to Hong Kong if the leader was in respite and doing nothing and the competitors were not. John Tsang hit back on a television talk show, explaining that by rest and recuperate he was only referring to the political turmoil of recent years. While his arch rival Carrie Lam said she would introduce a new fiscal philosophy if she was elected, with investment in welfare and youth services, Tsang dismissed the criticism of being too fiscally conservative, saying he did boost spending on social welfare while in office by almost 60 per cent in the past five years. Tsang also denied Lam claiming that the government's opposition to the universal retirement protection scheme was due to the his statistics, explaining that he was never involved in the issue.

Late January to early February 2017: Canvassing nominations

After days of candidates meeting members of the Election Committee from different sectors to canvass at least 150 nominations to enter the race, by 27 January Apple Daily reported that Carrie Lam had already secured 300 to 400 nominations. Heung Yee Kuk and the New Territories Association of Societies (NTAS) stated that they inclined to nominate Lam. Together with pro-Beijing parties Democratic Alliance for the Betterment and Progress of Hong Kong (DAB), Hong Kong Federation of Trade Unions (FTU), and Business and Professionals Alliance for Hong Kong (BPA), as well as Import and Export subsector and Sports and Culture sub-subsectors, Lam was estimated to grab more than 500 nominations. Pro-Beijing heavyweights such as FTU honorary president Cheng Yiu-tong and NPCSC delegate Rita Fan had also reportedly joined Lam's campaign team as senior advisers. In contrast, despite topping in the polls, John Tsang was speculated securing less than 100 nominations. Tsang refused to reveal the number of nominations he had secured, stating "[t]here is no reason for me to believe that the central government does not trust me," as pro-Beijing electors felt pressured to nominate him amid the speculation that he was not Beijing's preferred candidate. Regina Ip was speculated holding about 20 nominations from her New People's Party, while Woo Kwok-hing, who had not received any electors' endorsement, said he was confident in receiving enough nominations.

Heung Yee Kuk, the rural body commanding 26 votes in the Election Committee, backed away from earlier talk of nominating Carrie Lam after meeting with Lam, Tsang and Ip on 1 February. Kuk chairman Kenneth Lau praised Tsang’s proposal for a "mixed development mode" of small-house construction with Home Ownership Scheme flats as a solution for the long-debated Small House Policy as a novel idea. Lam on other hand addressed the illegal alteration controversy which she dealt with during her office as Secretary for Development, saying she was open to the possibility of reviving a previous policy which the indigenous villagers could voluntarily register illegal alterations to their homes in exchange for a temporary reprieve from enforcement action. Ip urged the Kuk to give up the idea of bundling its votes for any single candidate. Woo Kwok-hing, who did not meet with the Kuk, criticised Lam and Tsang for offering "blank checks" on making concessions to the indigenous villagers.

On 2 February, Carrie Lam received the endorsement from Joseph Yam, former Chief Executive of the Hong Kong Monetary Authority who joined Lam's campaign office as senior adviser. Lam also criticised John Tsang without naming him in an interview, saying that he once damage the relationship between the executive and the legislative branches when Tsang during his office as Financial Secretary refused to answer four legislators' questions who were under the government's legal challenge during a Legislative Council meeting in December 2016 and that she was the person who resolved the conflict. John Tsang hit back on the next day, saying that Lam, who was Chief Secretary at that time, had sent letters to the Legislative Council President to state that government's stance was not to answer those four legislators' question and Lam herself had been informed of the legal advice Tsang received on the matter. Tsang said the government's stance changed only after the legislators met with Lam after the meeting. Tsang also revealed that an unexpected handshake from President Xi Jinping in Beijing in June 2015, which was speculated as a sign of endorsement, was one of his reasons to run for the Chief Executive.

John Tsang also launched a crowdfunding website on 3 February to reach out to the public who had no vote in the coming election hours before Carrie Lam's large-scale election rally.

Allegations of Beijing manipulation

There were reports that central government officials had given "red light" to John Tsang running in the election and had allegedly asked John Tsang not to run for more than ten times, including rumours of him being offered the deputy governor post at the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank in return for not joining the race. Tsang refuted such claims, only saying that there were "friends" who supported him and some who did not.

On 17 January, New People's Party deputy chairman Michael Tien complained the election had "lost its shape" due to the increasing interference of "an invisible hand". He revealed that many of the 1,194 Election Committee members had received phone calls asking them to nominate certain candidates. Tien did not disclose the name of the candidate backed by the invisible hand, despite the Liaison Office had reportedly informed senior editors of the local pro-Beijing newspapers that Carrie Lam was Beijing's preferred candidate ahead of her declaration of candidacy and has actively lobbied for Lam. The senior editors were told to "gradually devote more extensive coverage" to Lam. However, several political observers, as well as the pro-Beijing Sing Pao Daily News who has launched a months-long high-profile editorial attacks on the Liaison Office, say the Liaison Office does not reflect Beijing’s wishes on the matter as the election has become part of the power struggle within the Chinese Communist Party in which the Liaison Office tries to keep its grip on Hong Kong.

Carrie Lam dismissed the speculation that the Liaison Office had been canvassing for her behind the scenes, saying that she did not see any evidence or the need for the Liaison Office to lobby for her. Lam later added that she has no power to tell the Liaison Office not to lobby the electors to vote for her in an interview. She admitted that it would be counterproductive if the public believed a "visible hand" was behind the election.

Nominations

See also: List of members of the Election Committee of Hong Kong, 2016–21

The nomination period will run from 14 February to 1 March 2017. A minimum number of 150 nominations from the members of the Election Committee must be subscribed in order to stand in the election.

Liberal Party honorary chairman James Tien became the first Election Committee member to endorse John Tsang on 19 January, stating that he will nominate Tsang. Medical subsector’s Ho Pak-leung and Financial Services subsector’s Ricky Chim Kim-lun became the second and third electors to endorse Tsang. Two other Medical electors, Choi Kin and Leung Ka-lau, also inclined to nominate Tsang. Tycoon Marjorie Yang, Tsang's friends since their undergraduate years at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. was reportedly among the few heavyweights supporting Tsang. Pro-democrat legislator Dennis Kwok, who was the coordinator of the 325-member "Democrats 300+", said the bloc was more likely to nominate John Tsang and Woo Kwok-hing to boost the competitiveness of the election.

Heung Yee Kuk chairman Kenneth Lau and vice-chairman Cheung Hok-ming, who had agree to join Carrie Lam's campaign office, and the 26-member Heung Yee Kuk subsector in the Election Committee tend to nominate Lam. Lau later flip-flopped, saying that the Kuk was still undecided and he himself had refused to take the post at Lam's campaign office. The pro-Beijing New Territories Association of Societies (NTAS), which commands about 100 electors and its chairman Chan Yung has joined Carrie Lam's campaign office, also expressed its intention to nominate Lam. The Chinese General Chamber of Commerce, which commands 18-seat Commercial (Second) subsector, also expressed its intention to nominate Lam after meeting with her.

Pro-democrats' civil nomination

The pro-democracy group Power for Democracy has proposed a campaign of conducting a "civil nomination". Any candidate that secures 37,790, one per cent of Hong Kong's registered voters, form the general public with promises of pushing political reform beyond the NPCSC framework and safeguarding the Hong Kong's core values, would be a "civil candidate" whom the Power for Democracy would also convince more than 150 pro-democrat Election Committee members to nominate the "civil candidate".

Opinion polling

Date(s) conducted	Polling source	Sample size	CY Leung	Carrie Lam	John Tsang	Jasper Tsang	Regina Ip	KH Woo	Antony Leung	Norman Chan	Audrey Eu	Frederick Ma	Bernard Chan	Others	Don't know/None of above/ Abstain
19–24 Jan 2017	Ming Pao/HKUPOP	1,006	-	35.3%	38.0%	-	7.3%	10.1%	-	-	-	-	-	-	9.3%
18–20, 23–24 Jan 2017	HKEJ/CCPOS	1,036	-	30.9%	33.5%	7.2%	6.4%	8.1%	-	-	-	-	-	-	13.9%
11–18 Jan 2017	RAHK	1,048	-	26%	30%	16%	6%	5%	-	-	-	-	-	4%	13%
12–15 Jan 2017	nowTV/LUPGP	1,103	-	22.0%	31.3%	7.7%	5.4%	12.0%	-	-	-	-	-	-	21.6%
4–10 Jan 2017	SCMP/CCPOS	1,024	-	23.2%	27.6%	7.9%	9.7%	12.6%	-	-	-	-	-	-	19.0%
16–20 Dec 2016	nowTV/LUPGP	1,007	-	20.2%	26.6%	8.0%	10.7%	11.5%	-	-	-	-	-	-	23.0%
12–16 Dec 2016	HKEJ/CCPOS	1,032	-	23.9%	32.6%	7.6%	6.6%	11.4%	-	-	-	-	-	-	18.0%
5–6 Dec 2016	HK01/HKUPOP	516	6.9%	10.8%	30.0%	13.9%	6.1%	8.4%	5.8%	0.5%	-	-	-	4.5%	13.1%
24–29 Nov 2016	nowTV/LUPGP	1,052	9.7%	8.3%	28.0%	10.7%	6.2%	9.8%	-	-	-	-	-	-	27.3%
28 Oct–2 Nov 2016	nowTV/LUPGP	1,020	7.9%	8.3%	28.1%	9.7%	6.7%	12.2%	-	-	-	-	-	-	26.5%
26 Oct–2 Nov 2016	HKEJ/CCPOS	1,005	9.5%	10.3%	28.4%	11.4%	8.4%	13.5%	-	-	-	-	-	-	18.5%
3–5 Oct 2016	Initium/CCPOS	521	10.5%	11.6%	32.4%	11.8%	5.1%	-	14.1%	-	-	-	-	-	14.5%
26–27 Sep 2016	HK01/HKUPOP	513	10.9%	12.3%	28.6%	10.4%	3.8%	-	7.1%	0.6%	-	-	-	7.5%	19.0%
23 Jan 2016	HK01/HKUPOP	522	8%	16%	20%	5%	5%	-	8%	0%	11%	3%	1%	2%	19%

Two-way contest

Date(s) conducted	Polling source	Sample size	Carrie Lam	John Tsang	Don't know/ None of above/ Abstain
18–20, 23–24 Jan 2017	HKEJ/CCPOS	1,036	39.9%	48.7%	11.5%

Election

The election will be held on 26 March 2017.

See also

• 2014 Hong Kong protests
• Democratic development in Hong Kong
• Hong Kong Chief Executive election, 2012
• Hong Kong Election Committee Subsector elections, 2016
• Hong Kong legislative election, 2016

External links

Government websites

• Electoral Affairs Commission Official Website

Campaign websites

• Regina Ip's Official Campaign Website
• Carrie Lam's Official Campaign Website
• John Tsang's Official Campaign Website
• Woo Kwok-hing's Official Campaign Website