Hong Kong Democrats Fail to Regain Veto Power in Crucial By-Election

Supporters of Lee Cheuk-yan, a candidate for Hong Kong’s democratic camp, try to canvass votes for a crucial legislative by-election at the Mei Foo residential estate, in Hong Kong, China on Nov. 25, 2018. James Pomfret/Reuters

HONG KONG—Hong Kong’s democratic opposition failed to win back a crucial legislative council seat as pro-Beijing candidates were better funded to win an election on Nov. 25 at a time when the China-ruled city’s freedoms are under strain.

The democratic camp’s main candidate, Lee Cheuk-yan, lost to Rebecca Chan Hoi-yan, a pro-Beijing candidate backed by the Democratic Alliance for the Betterment and Progress of Hong Kong (DAB), by around 13,000 votes, or about 6 percent of the total.