Macau’s first “patriots only” legislative polls on Sunday saw one of the worst turnout rates in recent years, preliminary results showed, after authorities disqualified a dozen candidates and arrested a former opposition lawmaker.
The Chinese casino hub — with a population just shy of 700,000 — amended its election laws last year, giving national security officials the final say on candidates’ eligibility.
More than 175,200 residents voted to choose 14 members of the territory’s 33-seat legislature, with the remaining spots filled by sector-based indirect elections or by official appointment.
Photo: AFP
Officials said it was the highest number of votes cast in a legislative election since Macau reverted to Chinese rule in 1999, but turnout was just 53 percent of more than 328,000 registered voters, putting the vote fifth out of seven elections held post-handover in terms of participation.
Political scientist Eric Sautede said that Sunday’s turnout was a “perfect illustration of the expression ‘voting with one’s feet.’”
Election chiefs told a news conference they had no comment when asked about the record number of blank and invalid ballots cast — 5,987 and 7,077 respectively.
The elections strictly adhered to the fundamental principle of “patriots governing Macau,” Macau Chief Executive Sam Hou Fai (岑浩輝) said in a statement yesterday.
Macau, which has its own legal system largely based on Portuguese law, enacted national security legislation in 2009 and widened its powers in 2023.
Officials in July barred 12 election hopefuls from participating on the grounds that they did not uphold Macau’s mini constitution or pledge allegiance to the territory.
The same month, authorities arrested former legislator Au Kam-san (歐錦新) for alleged foreign collusion.
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