Centrism in Hong Kong
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Centrism in Hong Kong refers to a political outlook and alignment that positions itself between the pro-democracy and pro-Beijing camps. Those within this alignment are often referred to as the centrist camp (中間派),[1] centrist groups,[2] moderate camp[3] or moderate groups.[4]
Although they are not actively pro-government at the level of the pro-Beijing camp, many centrists interact with and support the Chinese government; for example, Ronny Tong of Path of Democracy entered the Executive Council of Hong Kong. Both Path of Democracy and Third Side join the ‘patriots-only’ legislative election.[5]
History
A 2015 poll by The University of Hong Kong found that 41.9% of Hong Kong's population describe themselves as "centrists", 28.4% as "pro-democracy camp supporters", and 11.4% as "pro-Beijing camp supporters".[6]
Christine Fong and Wong Sing-chi, classified as centrist in the 2016 New Territories East by-election, lost to Alvin Yeung, classified as pro-democracy camp. At the time, Christine Fong received 33,424 votes, while Wong Singh-chi received 17,257 votes; in New Territories, the centrist camp received about 12%.
Third Side chairman Tik Chi-yuen claims that voters abandoned the centrist line and voted for a pro-Beijing camp because of the 'Returning to the Edge Effect' (歸邊效應) in the election. He analyzed that the centrist camp is likely to win 1 seat in the New Territories if it works with centrist politicians at the 2016 Hong Kong legislative election.[7]
In the 2016 Hong Kong legislative election; Wong Singh-chi bolted from the Third Side and ran for the Social Welfare functional constitution, Tik Chi-yuen ran for the Kowloon West, Christine Fong was eliminated from 10th place with 34,544 votes in the eastern district of New Territories,[8] the Path of Democracy sent two lists to Hong Kong Island and the eastern part of the New Territories and losing with 10,028 and 8,084 votes (respectively, which was a very small number of votes, resulting in the confiscation of the election deposit).
In the 2021 Hong Kong legislative election, the only centrist candidate elected was Tik Chi-yuen.[9]
Political organizations
Current
- Path of Democracy[10] (2015–present)
- Third Side[2] (2016–present)
- HK Round Table On People’s Livelihood (2022–present)
Former
- Hope for Hong Kong[11] (2020–2021)
Macau
In Macau, there are two political parties that are part of the centrist spectrum, Synergy of Macao and Macao Civic Power.
