Hong Kong elections: how “patriots only” strengthen Beijing’s grip

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“There is a saying that when the government is doing well and its credibility is high, voter turnout will decrease because people do not have a high demand to choose different lawmakers to oversee the government,” he said. she told the Global Times, a newspaper controlled by the Communist Party. “Therefore, I think the turnout doesn’t mean anything. “

The residents’ limited enthusiasm was evident throughout the day. Volunteers and contestants made last-minute presentations at street stalls outside metro stations, handing out leaflets as loudspeakers rang out prerecorded slogans, but most passers-by ignored them.

Queues were scarce at the city’s polling stations. On Sunday afternoon, at a resort on the west coast of Hong Kong Island, three police officers guarded the pedestrian crossing, hardly stopping to enter.

More than 10,000 police officers have been deployed across the city, officials said, along with 900 staff from the Independent Commission against Corruption, the government body responsible for overseeing the ban on calling for a boycott of votes.

Ling Lui, 26, who showed up to vote with his father at a polling station in eastern Hong Kong Island, said the “patriots only” election would benefit Hong Kong. She was looking, she said, for a candidate who “would love Hong Kong, speak out and be active.”

Paul Lai, 50, was less confident. He had to queue to vote in previous elections, he said after voting, but this year there were only two or three people inside his polling station. He attributed the decline in turnout in part to the contestants, many of whom he said were new and unfamiliar faces.

When asked how he chose who to vote for, he replied, “Nothing, really. Just look at their platform, if they have one. (Some of the candidates didn’t post any platforms or had any social media presence.) He continued, “There’s nothing you can do. Pick one at random.

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