Hardliner to be new Hong Kong leader

John Lee, a hardline security chief who oversaw a crackdown on Hong Kong’s pro-democracy movement, has been elected as the city’s next leader in a vote cast by a largely pro-Beijing committee.

Mr Lee was the only candidate and won with more than 99% of the vote in which nearly all 1,500 committee members were carefully vetted by China’s central government in Beijing.

He will replace current leader Carrie Lam on July 1.

Ms Lam’s five-year term was marked by huge pro-democracy protests calling for her resignation, a security crackdown that has quashed virtually all dissent, and the recent Covid-19 wave that had overwhelmed the health system – events that have undermined Hong Kong’s reputation as an international business hub with western-style freedoms.

“I look forward to all of us starting a new chapter together, building a Hong Kong that is caring, open and vibrant, and a Hong Kong that is full of opportunities and harmony,” Mr Lee said in his victory speech.

Ms Lam congratulated Mr Lee in a statement and said she would submit the election results to Beijing.

The election followed major changes to Hong Kong’s electoral laws last year to ensure that only “patriots” loyal to Beijing can hold office.

The legislature was also reorganised to all but eliminate opposition voices.

The elaborate arrangements surrounding the predetermined outcome speak to Beijing’s desire for a veneer of democracy.

The committee members voted in a secret ballot, and Mr Lee’s 1,416 votes were the highest support ever

for the city’s top leadership position.

Without opposition, Mr Lee was likely to have an easier time governing Hong Kong compared with Ms Lam, said Ivan Choy, a senior lecturer at the Chinese University of Hong Kong’s Department of Government and Public Administration.

“A major reason for easier governance is that

the electoral system has changed,” he said.

“In the legislature and the election committee, there is almost no political opposition and the political spectrum is concentrated towards the pro-establishment camp.”

The European Union said Mr Lee’s election “violates democratic principles and political pluralism in Hong Kong”.

NO OPPOSITION: Beijing loyalist John Lee will take over from Carrie Lam on July 1.