Hong Kong electoral reforms: aspiring candidates for city’s next Legislative Council polls will need establishment’s blessing to run

ANYONE aspiring to run for Hong Kong’s Legislative Council will need to secure an unspecified number of nominations from a committee stacked with pro-establishment members under Beijing’s plan to drastically overhaul the city’s political system, a senior Chinese official confirmed on Friday.

Wang Chen, vice-chairman of the National People’s Congress Standing Committee (NPCSC), China’s top legislative body, also confirmed the electoral shake-up would involve amending Annexes I and II of the Basic Law, though the main text of Hong Kong’s mini-constitution would remain unchanged.