All 161 candidates cleared to run in Hong Kong’s coming Legco election

All 161 aspirants seeking a seat in Hong Kong’s second “patriots-only” legislature are cleared to run in the poll after having their candidacy validated by a government-led panel, with the city’s No 2 official expressing hopes for the coming contest to demonstrate the city’s “high-quality election culture”.

Chief Secretary Eric Chan Kwok-ki, who chairs the Candidate Eligibility Review Committee, also said on Monday that the panel’s work would allow candidates to conduct campaigns “as soon as possible”.

The government cleared the way for all candidates a day before it took charge for the first time to hold election forums. The first two sessions covering two of the 10 geographical constituencies will be aired by the city’s public broadcaster RTHK on Tuesday.

“I truly hope that candidates can grasp the opportunity to demonstrate their vision and also the high-quality election culture of Hong Kong,” Chan said.

“I also hope residents will seriously study candidates’ manifestos and cast their sacred votes on December 7.”

The vetting mechanism led by the committee was introduced as part of Beijing’s “patriots-only” electoral overhaul four years ago, designed to screen hopefuls for national security risks.