Hong Kong's pro-democracy camp has won more than a third of seats in elections on the island, and so retains a key veto over future major legislation.
Final results show the pro-democracy opposition won 23 out of 60 seats in the Legislative Council of the Chinese-administered but autonomous territory.
Only 30 of the 60 seats in the council are directly elected - the other 30 are allocated to special interest groups.
Hong Kong's election process is said to be the most open anywhere in China.
There had been predictions of heavy losses for the pro-democracy camp and some candidates issued statements on Sunday saying the situation was critical. Others were in tears, expecting to lose.
The BBC's Vaudine England in Hong Kong says analysts had believed pro-government parties would make significant gains after the surge in pro-China patriotism sparked by the Beijing Olympics and the Sichuan earthquake.
China had also promised the region some form of universal suffrage by 2017, blunting the democratic camp's campaign.
Pro-business resignation
Leading figures such as Emily Lau, Audrey Eu and Leung Kwok-hung, also known as Longhair, each fought off stiff competition to keep their seat.
The pro-government party, the Democratic Alliance for the Betterment of Hong Kong, or DAB, has also done well, thanks to its strong organisation.
And the pro-China independent Regina Ip won her seat.
But the pro-business Liberal party leader, James Tien lost his, and has resigned.
No comments:
Post a Comment