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

John Lee, a pro-Beijing loyalist who is the one candidate for Hong Kong's top put up, has been elected to be Hong Kong's next chief executive.

Paul Yeung | Bloomberg | Getty Images

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

Lee, the one candidate for Hong Kong's high submit, gained 1,416 votes in Sunday's election.

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

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

Hong Kong is a particular administrative area of China which returned to Chinese rule in 1997, after the U.Ok. handed over the former colony to Beijing. It is governed under the "one nation, two techniques" framework, and has limited election rights and a largely separate legal and economic system.

Hong Kong's electoral system went by means of a serious overhaul final 12 months after Beijing said that solely so-called "patriots" needs to be allowed to manipulate town.

At a press convention after his election, Lee was asked if his performance shall be "challenged by the dearth of electoral mandate and legitimacy within the eyes of some people."

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

"Anybody, who based on the law is certified, can take part and run for the election," he added.

Declaring that he garnered greater than 1,400 votes, Lee mentioned: "With that number of help, in fact, it encourages me and offers me the strong confidence that my course is agreed and shared by a lot of election committee members."

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

Bloomberg | Getty Pictures

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

"The collection of Lee, a profession police officer who played a number one role within the crackdown on the pro-democracy protests that started in 2019, indicates that Beijing's high precedence for Hong Kong is sustaining political safety rather than preserving its function as a dynamic global hub," they mentioned.

"Lee's appointment will reinforce Hong Kong's shift from being a worldwide monetary and enterprise middle to taking part in a narrower function as a capital gateway for China," Eurasia's analysts stated. "While the risks to political and monetary stability are modest, Lee's administration could also be poorly outfitted to reply to a serious shock."

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

The election was earlier postponed as a consequence of a surge in Covid circumstances within the Asian monetary hub.

I make it a really clear level that I'm very aware of the need to be accessible to the world. And likewise it is an important factor for Hong Kong to be able to resume regular travel with the mainland.

John Lee

Hong Kong's incoming chief government

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

"Sure, we now have challenges now because of the necessity to management Covid-19 and some of the measures are certainly creating inconvenience," he acknowledged.

"I make it a really clear level that I am very aware of the must be accessible to the world. And likewise it is an important thing for Hong Kong to be able to resume normal travel with the mainland."

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

Lee also called on citizens to observe the recommendation and measures of the government, and said town will seek to spice up its vaccination price. In response to authorities statistics, greater than 91% of the inhabitants above the age of 12 have received their first vaccine dose as of Saturday, and 85.2% have obtained their second dose.

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

"I extend my sincere congratulations to Mr John Lee on his profitable election," she said in a press release. "The present-term government and I will ensure a seamless transition with the Chief Government-elect. We will render all of the assist wanted for the belief of office by the new time period of presidency."

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