Hong Kong’s next Chief Government shall be Beijing loyalist John Lee

John Lee, a pro-Beijing loyalist who is the one candidate for Hong Kong's top publish, has been elected to be Hong Kong's subsequent chief government.

Paul Yeung | Bloomberg | Getty Photos

John Lee, a Beijing loyalist, has been elected to be Hong Kong's next chief government.

Lee, the only candidate for Hong Kong's top submit, won 1,416 votes in Sunday's election.

About 1,500 members of a largely pro-Beijing election committee cast their votes to pick out the new leader. Lee solely needed a simple majority to win.

The 64-year-old Lee, who was previously Hong Kong's chief secretary, will start his five-year term on July 1, replacing outgoing Chief Govt Carrie Lam.

Hong Kong is a special administrative region of China which returned to Chinese rule in 1997, after the U.K. handed over the former colony to Beijing. It's ruled under the "one nation, two systems" framework, and has limited election rights and a largely separate authorized and economic system.

Hong Kong's electoral system went via a serious overhaul final yr after Beijing stated that only so-called "patriots" must be allowed to control the town.

At a press conference after his election, Lee was requested if his efficiency shall be "challenged by the dearth of electoral mandate and legitimacy within the eyes of some individuals."

His reply was that his election was "run in accordance with the legal guidelines of Hong Kong."

"Anybody, who according to the law is qualified, can take part and run for the election," he added.

Declaring that he garnered greater than 1,400 votes, Lee stated: "With that number of assist, of course, it encourages me and offers me the robust confidence that my route is agreed and shared by numerous election committee members."

John Lee, a Beijing loyalist, has been picked to be the city's subsequent chief executive.

Bloomberg | Getty Photographs

In a notice last week, analysts at Eurasia Group weighed in on Beijing's choice of Lee as the following Hong Kong leader.

"The number of Lee, a profession police officer who played a leading function in the crackdown on the pro-democracy protests that began in 2019, signifies that Beijing's top precedence for Hong Kong is sustaining political security rather than preserving its position as a dynamic world hub," they mentioned.

"Lee's appointment will reinforce Hong Kong's shift from being a worldwide financial and business middle to enjoying a narrower position as a capital gateway for China," Eurasia's analysts stated. "Whereas the risks to political and monetary stability are modest, Lee's administration may be poorly equipped to reply to a serious shock."

In keeping with China's Covid-19 coverage, Hong Kong has a so-called "dynamic zero" strategy for the virus and imposed strict measures in January in an attempt to blunt its unfold. Town tightened restrictions further in February as new cases raged, however started easing slightly in late April.

The election was earlier postponed as a result of a surge in Covid instances within the Asian financial hub.

I make it a really clear point that I am very acutely aware of the should be accessible to the world. And also it is an important thing for Hong Kong to have the ability to resume normal journey with the mainland.

John Lee

Hong Kong's incoming chief executive

At the press convention, Lee was also asked how he'll present the worldwide community that Hong Kong is open for enterprise.

"Sure, now we have challenges now due to the need to control Covid-19 and a number of the measures are indeed creating inconvenience," he acknowledged.

"I make it a really clear point that I'm very acutely aware of the must be accessible to the world. And in addition it is an important thing for Hong Kong to be able to resume regular travel with the mainland."

He mentioned he will likely be talking to his counterparts in Beijing "to find out what are the conditions that will be required for normal journey to be resumed with the mainland."

Lee also known as on citizens to follow the recommendation and measures of the government, and stated town will seek to spice up its vaccination price. In accordance with authorities statistics, greater than 91% of the inhabitants above the age of 12 have acquired their first vaccine dose as of Saturday, and 85.2% have received their second dose.

Hong Kong's outgoing chief govt Lam congratulated Lee on Sunday.

"I prolong my honest congratulations to Mr John Lee on his successful election," she mentioned in a press release. "The current-term government and I'll guarantee a seamless transition with the Chief Government-elect. We are going to render all the support wanted for the idea of workplace by the brand new time period of presidency."

Correction: This story has been updated to mirror that John Lee won 1,416 votes in Hong Kong's chief executive election. An earlier model of the story misrepresented that figure.