Hong Kong’s next Chief Govt will be Beijing loyalist John Lee

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

Paul Yeung | Bloomberg | Getty Pictures

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

Lee, the one candidate for Hong Kong's prime post, won 1,416 votes in Sunday's election.

About 1,500 members of a largely pro-Beijing election committee solid their votes to select the brand new chief. Lee only needed a easy majority to win.

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

Hong Kong is a special administrative region of China which returned to Chinese language rule in 1997, after the U.Ok. handed over the former colony to Beijing. It is ruled underneath the "one nation, two methods" framework, and has restricted election rights and a largely separate legal and economic system.

Hong Kong's electoral system went through a serious overhaul final yr after Beijing said that solely so-called "patriots" needs to be allowed to control town.

At a press conference after his election, Lee was requested if his performance will be "challenged by the shortage of electoral mandate and legitimacy in the eyes of some individuals."

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

"Anybody, who in line with the legislation is qualified, can take part and run for the election," he added.

Stating that he garnered greater than 1,400 votes, Lee said: "With that variety of support, of course, it encourages me and provides me the robust confidence that my path is agreed and shared by a number of election committee members."

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

Bloomberg | Getty Photographs

In a notice final week, analysts at Eurasia Group weighed in on Beijing's selection of Lee as the subsequent Hong Kong chief.

"The selection of Lee, a career police officer who played a leading function within the crackdown on the pro-democracy protests that began in 2019, indicates that Beijing's top precedence for Hong Kong is maintaining political safety rather than preserving its function as a dynamic world hub," they said.

"Lee's appointment will reinforce Hong Kong's shift from being a worldwide monetary and enterprise center to enjoying a narrower position as a capital gateway for China," Eurasia's analysts said. "While the risks to political and monetary stability are modest, Lee's administration could also be poorly geared up to reply to a serious shock."

In line with China's Covid-19 coverage, Hong Kong has a so-called "dynamic zero" technique for the virus and imposed strict measures in January in an try to blunt its spread. The city tightened restrictions further in February as new circumstances raged, however started easing slightly in late April.

The election was earlier postponed resulting from a surge in Covid instances within the Asian financial hub.

I make it a very clear point that I am very aware of the need to be accessible to the world. And in addition it is an important factor for Hong Kong to have the ability to resume normal journey with the mainland.

John Lee

Hong Kong's incoming chief govt

On the press conference, Lee was additionally asked how he will show the international neighborhood that Hong Kong is open for business.

"Yes, we've challenges now due to the need to management Covid-19 and some of the measures are indeed creating inconvenience," he acknowledged.

"I make it a really clear point that I'm very conscious of the have to be accessible to the world. And likewise it is a crucial thing for Hong Kong to be able to resume regular journey with the mainland."

He mentioned he will probably be talking to his counterparts in Beijing "to seek out out what are the conditions that might be required for regular travel to be resumed with the mainland."

Lee additionally referred to as on residents to observe the recommendation and measures of the government, and mentioned the city will seek to boost its vaccination rate. In response to authorities statistics, greater than 91% of the population above the age of 12 have obtained 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 sincere congratulations to Mr John Lee on his successful election," she stated in a press release. "The present-term authorities and I'll guarantee a seamless transition with the Chief Executive-elect. We are going to render all the support needed for the idea of workplace by the brand new time period of presidency."

Correction: This story has been updated to mirror that John Lee received 1,416 votes in Hong Kong's chief govt election. An earlier version of the story misrepresented that determine.