The 1999 Hong Kong District Council elections were held on 28 November 1999 for all 18

districts A district is a type of administrative division that, in some countries, is managed by the local government. Across the world, areas known as "districts" vary greatly in size, spanning regions or counties, several municipalities, subdivisions ...

of Hong Kong, for 390 members from directly elected constituencies out of total 519 council members. It was the first District Council election after the

handover of Hong Kong Sovereignty of Hong Kong was transferred from the United Kingdom to the People's Republic of China (PRC) at midnight on 1 July 1997. This event ended 156 years of British rule in the former colony. Hong Kong was established as a special admin ...

in 1997, replacing the existing Provisional District Councils appointed by

Chief Executive A chief executive officer (CEO), also known as a central executive officer (CEO), chief administrator officer (CAO) or just chief executive (CE), is one of a number of corporate executives charged with the management of an organization especially ...

Tung Chee-hwa Tung Chee-hwa (; born 7 July 1937) is a Hong Kong businessman and politician who served as the first Chief Executive of Hong Kong between 1997 and 2005, upon the transfer of sovereignty on 1 July. He is currently a vice-chairman of the Chi ...

. The

pro-Beijing camp The pro-Beijing camp, pro-establishment camp, pro-government camp or pro-China camp refers to a political alignment in Hong Kong which generally supports the policies of the Beijing central government and the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) ...

scored fairly well in the election, with the flagship pro-Beijing party, the

Democratic Alliance for the Betterment of Hong Kong The Democratic Alliance for the Betterment and Progress of Hong Kong (DAB) is a pro-Beijing conservative political party in Hong Kong. Chaired by Starry Lee and holding 13 Legislative Council seats, it is currently the largest party in the ...

(DAB), improved its performance in catching up with the Democratic Party, the largest

pro-democracy Democratization, or democratisation, is the transition to a more democratic political regime, including substantive political changes moving in a democratic direction. It may be a hybrid regime in transition from an authoritarian regime to a full ...

party. The Democratic Party sustained its political momentum by securing 24.9 per cent of the votes as compared to 22.8 per cent in 1994. The DAB and the Democratic Party became the largest parties in the District Councils, while DAB captured 83 seats out of 176 candidates, the Democratic Party captured 86 out of 173 candidates. The pro-grassroots pro-democracy party, the

Association for Democracy and People's Livelihood The Hong Kong Association for Democracy and People's Livelihood (ADPL) is a Hong Kong pro-democracy social-liberal political party catering to grassroots interest with a strong basis in Sham Shui Po. Established on 26 October 1986, it was on ...

(ADPL), appeared to lose some popular support from 7 per cent of the total vote in 1994 to 4.7 per cent in 1999. Overall, the pro-democracy forces failed to enhance their influence and outperform the pro-Beijing camp. After the election, Tung Chee-hwa reintroduced appointed members to the District Councils, appointing 102 pro-government members to prevent the pro-democracy camp from dominating the councils.

Overview

In comparison to the 1994 District Board elections, the pro-Beijing camp improved their performance and closed the gap with the

pro-democracy camp The pro-democracy camp, also known as the pan-democracy camp, is a political alignment in Hong Kong that supports increased democracy, namely the universal suffrage of the Chief Executive and the Legislative Council as given by the Basic L ...

. Although the Democratic Party maintained its share of votes, its success rate decline slightly due to the fct the party nominated far more candidates than it had in the 1994 elections. The Democratic Party contested directly with the

(DAB), the pro-Beijing party, in 96 constituencies, of which 54 were won by the Democrats, 36 by the DAB contenders and 6 by other candidates. Incumbents changing their constituencies such as

Stanley Ng Wing-fai Stanley Ng Wing-fai (; born 1961) is a Hong Kong based smart city expert, a licensed town planner and politician. He is Election Committee Member of Hong Kong (2006 to 2022) and Executive Committee member of the Democratic Party. Education and ...

Yau Tsim Mong District Yau Tsim Mong District is one of 18 districts of Hong Kong, located on the western part of Kowloon Peninsula. It is the core urban area of Kowloon. The district has the second highest population density of all districts, at . The 2016 By ...

and Shirley Ho Suk-ping in the

Sha Tin District Sha Tin District is one of the 18 districts of Hong Kong. As one of the 9 districts located in the New Territories, it covers the areas of Sha Tin, Tai Wai, Ma On Shan, Fo Tan, Siu Lek Yuen, and Ma Liu Shui. The district is the most po ...

were defeated by the pro-Beijing candidates. Other pro-democracy parties such as the

123 Democratic Alliance 123 Democratic Alliance ( Chinese: 一二三民主聯盟) was a pro-Kuomintang political party in Hong Kong. Established in 1994 by a group of pro-Taiwan, pro-democracy and pro-business politicians, it aims at striving for the unification o ...

and the

(ADPL) failed to achieve any breakthrough in elections. The 123 Democratic Alliance increased both its success rate and the number of candidates, but only winning 6 seats. It remained a small party and was eventually dissolved in 2000 due to the lack of financial support from the Taiwan government. The ADPL filled less candidates partly due to some ADPL defecting to the Democratic Party in 1997 after the internal dispute over the question of joining the Beijing-controlled

Provisional Legislative Council The Provisional Legislative Council (PLC) was the interim legislature of Hong Kong that operated from 1997 to 1998. The legislature was founded in Guangzhou and sat in Shenzhen from 1996 (with offices in Hong Kong) until the handover in 1997 an ...

. The ADPL failed to penetrate into other districts apart from its political base at Shamshuipo. The Frontier and the Citizens Party remained uninterested in the local elections, with the Frontier nominated only 9 candidates to compete in

Sha Tin Sha Tin, also spelt Shatin, is a neighbourhood along Shing Mun River in the eastern New Territories, Hong Kong. Administratively, it is part of the Sha Tin District. Sha Tin is one of the neighbourhoods of the Sha Tin New Town project. The ...

and

Eastern Eastern may refer to: Transportation *China Eastern Airlines, a current Chinese airline based in Shanghai *Eastern Air, former name of Zambia Skyways *Eastern Air Lines, a defunct American airline that operated from 1926 to 1991 *Eastern Air Li ...

districts, of which 4 of them were elected. The Citizens Party had only Chan Tim-shing elected in the Eastern District. The pro-Beijing camp relied on the DAB to counter the pro-democracy forces. The DAB drastically increased its numbers of candidates from 83 in 1994 to 176 in 1999. Its success rate also rose from 44.6 per cent to 47.2 per cent, contributed by the strong grassroots work of the DAB candidates. The pro-business

Liberal Party The Liberal Party is any of many political parties around the world. The meaning of ''liberal'' varies around the world, ranging from liberal conservatism on the right to social liberalism on the left. __TOC__ Active liberal parties This is a li ...

improved its performance by lower its candidates form 89 to 34, with success rate rising from 20.2 to 44.1 per cent. The Liberal Party recruited some candidates with strong grassroots networks prior the elections to compensate its weakness in district works. The party leaders, such as Chairman

James Tien Pei-chun James Tien Pei-chun, GBS, OBE, JP (; born 8 January 1947) is the former Chairman and Leader of the Liberal Party (LP) and former member of the Legislative Council of Hong Kong (Legco). Coming from the background of an entrepreneur, he was ...

, legislators

Selina Chow Liang Shuk-yee Selina Chow Liang Shuk-yee (; born 25 January 1945) is a former Hong Kong television executive and politician. She was a member of the Legislative Council for nearly three decades, and was also a member of the Executive Council. She is honorar ...

and

Howard Young Howard Young How Wah (, born 30 March 1948 in Hong Kong with family roots in Xinhui, Guangdong) was a member of the Legislative Council of Hong Kong ( Functional constituencies, Tourism) and the member of Southern District Council. He is a mem ...

also contested in the elections, though Chow was defeated. The

Hong Kong Progressive Alliance The Hong Kong Progressive Alliance (HKPA) was a pro-Beijing, pro-business political party in the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region of the People's Republic of China. It was established in 1994 and was merged into the Democratic Alliance ...

(PA) strategically merged with the

Liberal Democratic Federation of Hong Kong The Liberal Democratic Federation of Hong Kong (, abbreviated 自民聯; LDF) was a pro-Beijing pro-business and conservative political party in Hong Kong. It was established in 1990, and was composed of mainly conservative businessmen and pr ...

(LDF), nominating fewer candidates and improving its performance by winning 16 as compared to 12 in 1994. The stronghold of PA remained in the

Kowloon City District Kowloon City District is one of the 18 districts of Hong Kong. It is located in the city of Kowloon. It had a population of 381,352 in 2001, and increased to 418,732 in 2016. The district has the third most educated residents while its resi ...

, with the expansion of its influence to Sai Kung and

districts. The Shatin-based

Civil Force Civil Force () is a district-based pro-Beijing political party in Hong Kong. Since 2014, the Civil Force has entered an alliance with the New People's Party of Regina Ip. Headed by chairman Pun Kwok-shan, it had its stronghold in the Sha Tin a ...

slightly increased its number of seats but saw a decline in its success rate.

Results

General outcome

, - ! style="background-color:#E9E9E9;text-align:center;" colspan=3 , Political Affiliation ! style="background-color:#E9E9E9;text-align:right;" , Popular vote ! style="background-color:#E9E9E9;text-align:right;" , % ! style="background-color:#E9E9E9;text-align:right;" , %± ! style="background-color:#E9E9E9;text-align:right;" , Standing ! style="background-color:#E9E9E9;text-align:right;" , Elected ! style="background-color:#E9E9E9;text-align:right;" , ± , - , style="background-color:Pink;border-bottom-style:hidden;" rowspan="8" , , width=1px style="background-color: " , , style="text-align:left;" ,

, 190,792 , , 23.53 , , 11.82 , , 176 , , 83 , , 27 , - , width=1px style="background-color: " , , style="text-align:left;" ,

, 23,168 , , 2.86 , , 1.33 , , 25 , , 16 , , 1 , - , width=1px style="background-color: " , , style="text-align:left;" ,

, 27,718 , , 3.42 , , 3.98 , , 34 , , 15 , , 3 , - , width=1px style="background-color: " , , style="text-align:left;" ,

, 19,633 , , 2.42 , , 0.65 , , 14 , , 11 , , 2 , - , width=1px style="background-color: " , , style="text-align:left;" ,

Hong Kong Federation of Trade Unions The Hong Kong Federation of Trade Unions (HKFTU) is a pro-Beijing labour and political group established in 1948 in Hong Kong. It is the oldest and largest labour group in Hong Kong with over 420,000 members in 253 affiliates and associated ...

, 1,074 , , 0.13 , , - , , 1 , , 1 , , 1 , - , style="background-color: ", , style="text-align:left;" , New Territories Heung Yee Kuk , 942 , , 0.12 , , - , , 1 , , 1 , , 0 , - , style="background-color: ", , style="text-align:left;" , Hong Kong Chinese Reform Association , - , , - , , - , , 1 , , 1 , , 0 , - , width=1px style="background-color: " , , style="text-align:left;" , Independent and others , 177,774 , , 21.92 , , - , , 180 , , 104 , , 4 , - style="background-color:Pink" , colspan=3 style="text-align:left;" , Total for pro-Beijing camp , , 443,441 , , 54.69, , - , , 436 , , 232 , , 22 , - , style="background-color:LightGreen;border-bottom-style:hidden;" rowspan="8", , width=1px style="background-color: " , , style="text-align:left;" , Democratic Party , 201,461 , , 24.85 , , 1.69 , , 173 , , 86 , , 13 , - , width=1px style="background-color: " , , style="text-align:left;" , Hong Kong Association for Democracy and People's Livelihood , 38,119 , , 4.70 , , 2.25 , , 32 , , 19 , , 1 , - , width=1px style="background-color: " , , style="text-align:left;" ,

, 11,396 , , 1.41 , , 0.60 , , 10 , , 6 , , 0 , - , style="background-color: ", , style="text-align:left;" ,

Frontier A frontier is the political and geographical area near or beyond a boundary. A frontier can also be referred to as a "front". The term came from French in the 15th century, with the meaning "borderland"—the region of a country that fronts ...

, 9,388 , , 1.16 , , - , , 9 , , 4 , , 1 , - , width=1px style="background-color: " , , style="text-align:left;" ,

Neighbourhood and Worker's Service Centre The Neighbourhood and Worker's Service Centre (NWSC) is a pro-democracy political group in Hong Kong, holding one seat in the Legislative Council from 1995 to 1997, and since 1998. It was founded in 1985, with its roots in the New Youth Study S ...

, 3,295 , , 0.41 , , - , , 3 , , 2 , , 0 , - , width=1px style="background-color: " , , style="text-align:left;" , Citizens Party , 2,072 , , 0.26 , , - , , 1 , , 1 , , 0 , - , width=1px style="background-color: " , , style="text-align:left;" ,

Hong Kong Democratic Foundation The Hong Kong Democratic Foundation (; HKDF) is a Hong Kong public policy think tank established initially as a political party on 27 October 1989. The Foundation was founded in the run up to the first Legislative Council direct elections of 19 ...

, 1,392 , , 0.17 , , 0.42 , , 1 , , 1 , , 0 , - , width=1px style="background-color: " , , style="text-align:left;" , Independent democrats , 58,706 , , 7.24 , , - , , 54 , , 38 , , 7 , - style="background-color:LightGreen" , colspan=3 style="text-align:left;" , Total for pro-democracy camp , , 325,829 , , 40.18 , , - , , 283 , , 157 , , 22 , - style="background-color:#DDDDDD;" , colspan=3 style="text-align:left;" , Independent and others , 41,593 , , 5.13 , , - , , 79 , , 1 , , 0 , - , style="text-align:left;background-color:#E9E9E9" colspan="3", Total (turnout 35.82%) , width="75" style="text-align:right;background-color:#E9E9E9", 810,863 , width="30" style="text-align:right;background-color:#E9E9E9", 100.0 , style="text-align:right;background-color:#E9E9E9", - , style="text-align:right;background-color:#E9E9E9", 798 , style="text-align:right;background-color:#E9E9E9", 390 , style="text-align:right;background-color:#E9E9E9", 44 Note1: The total seats of the District Councils are 519 including 27 ex-officio members (Rural Committee Chairmen in the New Territories), and 102 members appointed members by the Chief Executive of Hong Kong.
Note2: Councilor Lau Kong-wah who ran under both DAB and Civil Force banners is counted as a DAB member in this chart.

Results by district

Vote summary

Seat summary

Aftermath

appointed 102 members to the District Council after the election to prevent the pro-democracy camp from dominating the District Councils. These included 41 from various political parties, namely the

, the

, and the

. There were no democrats appointed. The pro-democrats thus lost their domination of the

Kwun Tong Kwun Tong is an area in the Kwun Tong District of Hong Kong, situated at the eastern part of the Kowloon Peninsula, and its boundary stretches from Lion Rock in the north to Lei Yue Mun in the south, and from the winding paths of Kowl ...

Wong Tai Sin Wong Tai Sin or Huang Daxian () is a Chinese Taoist Deity popular in Jinhua, Zhejiang, and Hong Kong with the power of healing. The name, meaning the "Great Immortal Wong (Huang)", is the divine form of Huang Chuping or Wong Cho Ping (; c. 32 ...

and

Yau Tsim Mong Yau Tsim Mong District is one of 18 districts of Hong Kong, located on the western part of Kowloon Peninsula. It is the core urban area of Kowloon. The district has the second highest population density of all districts, at . The 2016 ...

District Councils where the pro-democrats had 15, 11 and 6 directly elected seats while pro-Beijing camp gained 15, 10 and 6 seats and 18, 14 and 8 seats after the appointments respectively.

References

{{Hong Kong elections 1999 elections in Asia 1999 elections in China 1999 in Hong Kong

1999 File:1999 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: The funeral procession of King Hussein of Jordan in Amman; the 1999 İzmit earthquake kills over 17,000 people in Turkey; the Columbine High School massacre, one of the first major school shoot ...

November 1999 events in Asia