Even with officials warning voters not to spoil their ballots, more than 41,000 invalid votes were cast on Sunday, about 3.1% of all votes, based on government data
The latest Hong Kong Legislative Council election just hit a record high for invalid ballots—a clear sign that many people are tuning out of a system redesigned to make sure only “patriots” get elected.
Even with officials warning voters not to spoil their ballots, more than 41,000 invalid votes were cast on Sunday, about 3.1% of all votes, based on government data cited by Nikkei Asia.
This figure is the highest since the 1997 handover and is 50% more than the 27,495 recorded in the previous poll in 2021. The significance of the protest votes was underlined by the fact that 11 of the 20 winners in the geographic constituencies received fewer valid votes than the total number of invalid ballots across all races.
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The surge in spoilt votes comes after the proportion of directly elected seats was slashed and strict candidate vetting was introduced following the imposition of China’s National Security Law in June 2020. The new system is also reflected in falling voter registration and low turnout.
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According to the city’s Electoral Affairs Commission, turnout was 31.90% of eligible voters—the second-lowest since 1997, and sharply down from the 58.28% turnout logged in 2016, before the “patriots only” rule took effect.
Toru Kurata, a professor and Hong Kong expert at Tokyo’s Rikkyo University, who spoke to Nikkei Asia, attributed the drop in voter registration, particularly among younger people, to “discontent” with the electoral process. Voter registration for the 18-to-20 age bracket plummeted 87.1% from 2021.
Officials insisted the election was a success. Chief Executive John Lee stressed the candidates engaged in a “high-quality, high-standard and healthy competition”. However, the government also wielded “sticks,” with the Independent Commission Against Corruption (ICAC) arresting 11 people for allegedly trying to