Functional Constituencies: A Unique Feature of the Hong Kong Legislative Council (with CD)

CHAPTER 4: Elected by the elite: Functional constituency legislators and elections

CHAPTER 4 Elected by the elite: Functional constituency legislators and elections Simon N.M. Young Introduction This chapter1 explores the functional constituency (FC) system from the perspective of its legislators and elections. FC legislators are a rare breed because of their origins in a unique electoral system. Candidates must satisfy many eligibility preconditions in order to qualify for FC election. One of the most important preconditions, which applies to all but 12 of the FCs, is the requirement that the candidate be of exclusively Chinese nationality. An analysis of legislators’ backgrounds since 1985 provides fruitful insights into the nature of the FC system. FC legislators are predominantly well-educated, middle-aged Chinese men who have established themselves in the business or professional world. Although the proportion of female FC legislators is increasing, diversity and community representativeness are generally lacking. The chapter also examines the quantitative performance of FC legislators and their tendency to utilise modern methods of communication (such as email, mobile phone, pager, website) to stay in touch with the public. Quantitative performance is assessed according to membership on Legislative Council (LegCo) committees, chairmanship of committees, attendance at meetings, number of questions asked in LegCo meetings, and number of motions and amendments to motions moved. Legislators are ranked according to their summed performance rankings. The overall rankings are compared against a number of characteristics pertaining to FCs and FC legislators. In the second part of this chapter, three aspects of FC elections are discussed. First, the high incidence of uncontested FCs is examined and critiqued. Secondly and thirdly, the elector registration and voter turnout rates are studied. The chapter concludes with a summary of findings and conclusions related to concerns about public accountability, commitment to public service, diversity and representativeness, political parties, and widening of the electorate. Functional constituency legislators Eligibility preconditions for being an FC legislator A person may be nominated as a candidate in an FC election only if the person satisfies the following nine preconditions; that he or she: • has reached 21 years of age;2 • is both registered and eligible to be registered as an elector for the constituency or has a ‘substantial connection’ with the constituency;3 • is both registered and eligible to be registered as an elector for a geographical constituency (GC);4 • is not disqualified from being elected as a member;5 • has ordinarily resided in Hong Kong for the three years immediately preceding the nomination;6 • is a Chinese citizen who is a permanent resident of Hong Kong with no right of abode in any country other than the People’s Republic of China, unless candidacy is sought in one of 12 specified FCs;7 • has lodged a deposit with the returning officer concerned;8 • has made and signed the necessary statutory declarations and promissory oaths; and9 • is not currently nominated as a candidate for another constituency, whether geographical or functional.10 With two exceptions, these preconditions also apply to persons seeking candidacy in GC elections. The second precondition listed above does not apply in GC elections; this means that candidates seeking election for a particular GC need not be a registered elector in or substantially connected to that GC.11 The GC candidate need only be registered and eligible to be registered in any GC. The other exception is that all candidates for GC elections must be Chinese citizens who are permanent residents of Hong Kong with no right of abode in any country other than the People’s Republic of China.12 112 Simon N.M. Young Minimum age requirement Candidates for LegCo elections must be 21 years of age, which is three years more than the minimum age for being a LegCo voter. The Basic Law of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region of the People’s Republic of China (Basic Law) does not prescribe this age limit, but does prescribe a minimum age requirement in respect of the chief executive and the president of LegCo, both of whom must be not less than 40 years of age.13 Before the implementation of Governor Patten’s 1995 political reforms, the minimum age for voters and candidates was the same: 21 years of age. Patten’s reform package did not include a proposal to lower the minimum age for candidacy . According to Article 21 of the Hong Kong Bill of Rights, only reasonable restrictions may be imposed on the right to be elected. There has yet to...