Constitutional chief notes tight constraints for by-election

Legislative Council member William Wong resigned from his post earlier following a suspected drink-driving incident. The Secretary for Constitutional and Mainland Affairs Janice Tse stated that she is currently discussing with the Electoral Affairs Commission (EAC) whether a by-election will be held, but noted that there are tight constraints regarding both time and cost.

"The term of our current Election Committee ends on October 21st," said Tse. "Should we really ask them to hold a Legislative Council by-election for a seat when this term of the committee is so close to expiring?"

"Then right after that, we have the election for the new term of the Election Committee, which has already been announced for November 22nd, with members taking office on February 1st next year. There will be a (vacuum) period in between."

"We will have the Chief Executive Election in February and March (next year), followed by the District Council Elections at the end of the year. Within a single year, we will be holding two major elections. On top of that, is staging an additional by-election just for one single seat truly necessary and cost-effective?"

"While a Legislative Council seat is important, we must consider other factors and priorities when determining whether it is an urgent matter," said Tse.