Hong Kong Chief Executive Carrie Lam announced on Friday that elections for the city legislature will be postponed a full year amid concerns that congregating in public to vote could cause a spike in coronavirus cases.
The postponement of the elections, originally scheduled for Sept. 6, strikes a sharp blow to pro-democracy groups that were eager to assert power in the legislative body, which has been historically controlled by a pro-Beijing faction installed by Chinese President Xi Jinping. A new “national security” law for the region, which has been used to target dissidents, has raised the stakes for these activists.
Lam did not commit to a new election date in the Asian hub, where cases of the coronavirus have been among the lowest of any major city in the world. Pro-democracy groups, whose attempts to protest a new security law in late June have been rejected because of the highly contagious disease, were dismayed but not surprised by the decision to scrap the election in a city that has routinely defied the rule of bureaucrats working for the Chinese Communist Party.
Two weeks ago, after the pro-democracy coalition held a primary in the city, officials condemned it as “nakedly illegal behavior.” Participation in the primary exceeded expectations by over 280%, with more than 600,000 people participating.
On Thursday, it was announced that 12 activists would be barred from running in the election. One of those disqualified was Joshua Wong, who has become the face of protests in the city. Hong Kong electoral officials argued that Wong was unable to run for office because he was unwilling to embrace the city’s new “national security” law.
Wong suspected that he might be disqualified, telling the Washington Examiner earlier this week, “They even hope to try their best to cancel the whole election.”
Cases of the coronavirus have surged recently in Hong Kong, where residents have been forbidden to congregate in groups of more than two as the number of infected patients continues to climb. Elections in nearby Singapore, where the caseload has been higher, proceeded last month, raising concerns that the Hong Kong government is using the pandemic as an excuse to delay what could be a monumental election shifting power away from mainland China.
According to the International Institute for Democracy and Electoral Assistance, more than 65 countries worldwide have delayed elections in an attempt to mitigate the spread of the coronavirus.
