Election of "parliament": Great gains by democrats

With 90% of ballots counted, the young student Nathan Law has the second highest number of votes for the Legislative Council. He had been one of the leaders of "Occupy Central" in 2014. Large increase in the number of voters (58%). If confirmed, the result could be critical for the re-election of the "chief executive" wanted by Beijing.

Hong Kong (AsiaNews / Agencies) - The results, not yet final, of the elections for the Legislative Council of Hong Kong (Legco) shows success of young democratic anti-Beijing leaders. These include student Nathan Law, 23, one of the leaders of the 2014 protests that gave birth to the Occupy Centralmovement and leader of the Demosisto party. He is now in the running for a seat in the assembly.

The polls have reached a record number of voters: 58% of the population, or 3.8 million people, a large increase compared to 45.2% in 2008. By the end of the day today the final results should be made public.

The Young Democrats are demanding more political representation in Hong Kong and less Beijing interference in the Territory, in order to keep intact the concept of "one country, two systems". In mid-July, the Demosisto group joined those who refused to sign the declaration desired by the Government which required candidates for election to state that Hong Kong "is an inalienable part of the Chinese mainland."

Nathan Law commented on the preliminary results, "I think the people of Hong Kong really wanted to change. Young people have a sense of urgency about the future. " With 90% of ballots counted, the young student has the second highest number of preferences. Even two members of Younginspiration group, born from the "Occupy" movement are in the running for a seat.

The Legco, composed of 70 members, is the body that approves the laws and the budget for the Territory. Only 35 seats are elected directly by the people: 30 are "functional constituencies", special representatives of professions or trades, only eligible by people linked to those categories (mostly close to Beijing). Then there are five "super seats" chosen by the voters of the whole territory. Although these elections were not to choose the next "chief executive", many analysts think that the results could undermine the second term of CY Leung, chosen by China.

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• democratic elections
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• beijing interference
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