One male lawmaker sports shoulder-length hair and Che Guevara T-shirts. Another is an ex-convict seeking Hong Kong's highest office.
The city's cast of political characters has taken an unusual twist in recent years -- a trend political analysts attribute to its practical culture and semi-democratic electoral system.
Perhaps the most colorful addition is veteran street protester "Long Hair" Leung Kwok-hung (梁國雄). He was once jailed for demonstrating inside the Legislative Council, but a wave of anti-government sentiment helped him win a legitimate seat in the building.
Leung has taken his street tactics inside the establishment.
He chanted, "Long live democracy! Long live the people!" during his swearing-in ceremony, raising his arm defiantly while shouting out slogans.
Leung also gets away with wearing his Che Guevara T-shirts to legislative meetings -- a stark contrast to the impeccably dressed businessmen and lawyers who serve alongside him.
Another unusual member of Hong Kong's political establishment is legislator Chim Pui-chung, who reclaimed his post after being ousted from the legislature following a real estate-related forgery conviction.
Chim spent a year in jail on the charge. After his release, he was later charged and convicted in another vote buying scandal.
Nonetheless Chim, who is known for riding in a gold Rolls Royce, managed to win back a seat in the legislature last year.
Now he's taking his political comeback further by announcing this week that he's running for Hong Kong's top job -- although his chances are considered remote.
Politics scholars say Leung and Chim are beneficiaries of Hong Kong's political system, the territory's pragmatic political culture and good timing.
Leung ran for office during a period of widespread discontent over Hong Kong's economic woes, a slow response to SARS and fears about proposed anti-subversion laws, the analysts said.
Anti-government sentiment crested in a 500,000-strong protest march on July 1, 2003.
"When people sent him into the legislature, they weren't expecting a lawmaker," but rather someone who could shake things up, said Chan Kin-man (陳健民) of the Chinese University of Hong Kong.
Leung was also helped by a proportional representation electoral system that is more favorable to candidates without large power bases.
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