Changing of the guard as 21 new members elected to Hong Kong delegation to China’s legislature with top neuroscientist Nancy Ip securing most votes

Incumbent Nancy Ip tops poll, while DAB chairwoman Starry Lee secures spot and appears poised for prominent role as city’s sole delegate to the NPC Standing Committee

Election result shows political elites prefer candidates whose professional backgrounds align with areas deemed crucial for city’s development, analysts say

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Flags flutter atop the Great Hall of the People in Beijing, where the National People’s Congress meets. Photo: Xinhua

Published: 12:14pm, 15 Dec 2022Updated: 9:21pm, 15 Dec 2022

Hong Kong’s delegation to the country’s legislature, the National People’s Congress (NPC), underwent a changing of the guard on Thursday with 21 new faces elected to its ranks and renowned neuroscientist Nancy Ip Yuk-yu securing the most votes.

Analysts said the election result showed the 1,273 political elites empowered with selecting delegates preferred candidates who worked in the same areas that Beijing had highlighted as crucial to Hong Kong’s development, such as science, culture, finance and law.

Twenty-seven newcomers and 15 incumbents vied for the 36 spots to represent the city in the nation’s legislature. Every incumbent won, including Hong Kong University of Science and Technology president Ip and singer-turned-businesswoman Cally Kwong Mei-wan.

Ip received 1,254 votes, or nearly 99 per cent of the total, a better showing than the 83 per cent that got her elected in 2017, when she ranked 29th among 36 winners.