HK Chief Secretary inspects preparations for fair, orderly elections

Chief Secretary John Lee on Wednesday (Sept. 15) visited the Registration & Electoral Office in Kowloon Bay to inspect the arrangements and preparations for the 2021 Election Committee Subsector Ordinary Elections to be held on Sunday (Sept. 19).

Lee was briefed by the office's staff on various aspects of the preparatory work for the elections, in particular newly introduced measures including the use of an electronic poll register system which allows voters to collect ballot papers at designated polling stations flexibly, and the Presiding Officers being able to set up a special queue for voters in need.

Lee said as the first elections following the improvement of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region's electoral system implemented from the national and local levels in March and May, the poll to be held on Sept. 19 will have a profound impact on Hong Kong's future effective governance.

He also noted that the electoral system is a crucial part of the city's political system. Improving the electoral system puts the principle of "patriots administering Hong Kong" into practice and ensures the city's long-term prosperity and stability, and is of great significance to the implementation of "one country, two systems".

The Chief Secretary added that the elections are rigorously guarded by the Candidate Eligibility Review Committee to ensure that only those who comply with the statutory requirements and conditions for genuinely upholding the Basic Law and bearing allegiance to the Hong Kong SAR are allowed as candidates.

Meanwhile, the office's preparatory work is at its final stage to make sure that the poll will be conducted in a fair, just, clean, orderly and safe manner in accordance with the law.

In these elections, a total of 36 subsectors are required to return 967 seats by election. Among them, 603 candidates from 23 subsectors will be returned uncontested.

For the other 13 subsectors, 412 candidates will contest 364 seats. Around 5,000 voters will be able to vote at five polling stations in Wan Chai, Kowloon, Sha Tin, Tsuen Wan and Tuen Mun on Sunday.