The 1940 Hong Kong Urban Council election was held on 29 February 1940 for one of the two unofficial seats in the

Urban Council of Hong Kong The Urban Council (UrbCo) was a municipal council in Hong Kong responsible for municipal services on Hong Kong Island and in Kowloon (including New Kowloon). These services were provided by the council's executive arm, the Urban Services ...

. It was the first contested election since the establishment of the Urban Council of Hong Kong and also the last one before the outbreak of the Pacific War. The next election to be held would be the 1952 election, twelve years later.

Overview

Only ratepayers who were included in the Special and Common Jury Lists of the years or ratepayers who are exempted from serving on Juries on account of their professional avocations, unofficial members of the

Executive Executive ( exe., exec., execu.) may refer to: Role or title * Executive, a senior management role in an organization ** Chief executive officer (CEO), one of the highest-ranking corporate officers (executives) or administrators ** Executive dir ...

or Legislative Council, or categories of profession were entitled to vote at the election. The two candidates were both from the Portuguese community in Hong Kong. Incumbent Dr. Roberto Alexandre de Castro Basto was proposed by the Hon. Sir

Henry Pollock Sir Henry Edward Pollock, QC, JP (, 16 December 1864 – 2 February 1953) was an English barrister who became a prominent politician in Hong Kong. He acted as Attorney General in Hong Kong on several occasions, and was once appointed to the ...

, K.C.,

LL.D. Legum Doctor (Latin: “teacher of the laws”) (LL.D.) or, in English, Doctor of Laws, is a doctorate-level academic degree in law or an honorary degree, depending on the jurisdiction. The double “L” in the abbreviation refers to the early ...

, seconded by Major C. M. Manners, O.B.E. had held three terms of officer of three years each on the Urban Council which expired a few weeks ago. Dr. Alberto Maria Rodrigues, a

University of Hong Kong The University of Hong Kong (HKU) (Chinese: 香港大學) is a public research university in Hong Kong. Founded in 1887 as the Hong Kong College of Medicine for Chinese, it is the oldest tertiary institution in Hong Kong. HKU was also the f ...

graduate who later became the Senior Unofficial Member of the Executive Council, was proposed by Mr. Leo d'Almada e Castro, Leo D'Almada e Castro, Snr., seconded by Lt.-Col. H. B. L. Dowbiggin, O.B.E. The election took place in the office of the Registrar of the Old Supreme Court Building, Hong Kong, Supreme Court from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. on 29 February. 682 eligible voters cast their votes but nine of them were declared invalid for various reasons. The Presiding Officer at the election was the Registrar Mr. L. R. Andrewes, assisted by Mr. W. R. N. Andrews, Miss Grace Ezra and three clerks. Dr. Rodrigues defeated the incumbent Dr. R. A. de Castro Basto by 407 votes to 266 votes as the result.

Citations

References

* Endacott, G. B. ''Government and people in Hong Kong, 1841-1962: a Constitutional History'' Hong Kong University Press. (1964) * ''The Hong Kong Government Gazette'' {{Hong Kong elections 1940 elections in Asia, Hong Kong 1940 in Hong Kong, Municipal election Elections in Hong Kong, Urban February 1940 events, Hong Kong municipal election 1940 elections in the British Empire, Hong Kong municipal election