Overview
- Official turnout was 31.9 percent, the second-lowest on record and only slightly above 2021, with about 1.3 million of 4.1 million registered voters casting ballots.
- Nearly half of the 90 seats were won by new faces under the Beijing‑designed system that limits direct elections to 20 seats and screens candidates for political loyalty.
- The election followed the Wang Fuk Court inferno that killed at least 159 people, with police arresting 15 construction‑sector figures on suspicion of manslaughter and investigators probing unsafe materials and possible bid‑rigging.
- Authorities reported arrests for urging boycotts or invalid votes and for sedition, including a 71‑year‑old detained for prejudicing a national‑security investigation, and summoned international media to warn against crossing legal “red lines.”
- Chief Executive John Lee said the incoming council will advance recovery and safety reforms, with a relief and rebuilding bill planned for the first sitting and a judge‑led independent inquiry underway.