Hong Kong’s local elections in spotlight after months of protests
Hong Kong is bracing itself for a fresh weekend of tension as voters in the city head to the polls after months of civil unrest.
More than 4m residents will go to the ballot box for district council elections on Sunday, with Hong Kong facing its first electoral test of public opinion since the pro-democracy protests erupted in June.
Protesters and police have been at a standoff for several months, with violence between the two sides escalating this week at a besieged university campus where demonstrators have been holed up.
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While the district council elections have historically been focused on lower government local issues, the poll is now expected to serve as a reading of the mood in the embattled city.
Who is competing?
Pro-democracy campaigners are hoping to field candidates in hundreds of seats as they look to remove the pro-Beijing’s majority.
Whoever wins the majority of district councils is awarded 117 of the 1,200 electoral college seats which comprise a committee that decides Hong Kong’s chief executive.
Carrie Lam, Hong Kong’s current chief executive, has come under intense pressure to resign since the riots started in June.
Doubts over whether the election will go ahead have mounted amid continued chaos in the city, with some streets on lockdown and serious disruption to travel.
There are also concerns that the voting could be affected by intimidation following recent cases of attacks on leaders from both sides.
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When did the crisis begin?
The pro-democracy protests began this summer following government plans to introduce a contentious extradition bill which has since been dropped.
Fears that the extradition move could be used to crack down on dissent in the former British colony have led to violence and mass marches, marking one of the greatest challenges to Beijing authorities in decades.
Despite the bill being dropped, the campaign among demonstrators has snowballed into a wider movement against Beijing’s rule.