Elections seek to catch a vibe ride

Night Vibes Hong Kong has been given a new task to heat up the atmosphere ahead of the district council elections due to be held in less than two months.

It was not part of the scope when the program was first launched.

At that time, it was purely an attempt by the government to stimulate the night economy after many local residents preferred lo lie flat at home or spend their precious dollars across the border rather than hanging out locally at night.

In the beginning, the vibes saw crowds flocking to makeshift waterfront bazaars, but the heat has cooled a little lately.

As Constitutional Affairs Secretary Erick Tsang Kwok-wai eyes the night vibes across Hong Kong to promote the district council polls that will be held on December 10, he is no doubt hoping they will help boost the electoral turnout.

A higher turnout will give the government a solid foundation to speak about an electoral reform that has transformed local politics from a system of pluralistic participation to a new mode of homogeneous involvement of patriots only.

And "patriots" and "establishment" have now become interchangeable terms.

To participate in the district council elections, candidates will have to secure nominations from members of three local government committees of the district - namely the area committee, fire safety committee and fight crime committee.

Following the crackdown on pan-democratic parties after waves of anti-government protests in 2019, only one party was left - the Democratic Party, which has pledged to field six members to contest the upcoming district polls.

The nomination period officially opened yesterday and it is nearly certain that, by the time nomination closes on October 30, none of the democrats will have met the elevated threshold for nomination.

Will the Democratic Party join the rest of its pan-democratic peers and formally disappear from sight after this electoral exercise? Time will tell.

With an election left to be contested by candidates from the establishment only, it has become a concern whether or not the December 10 turnout rate will hit a new low.

Even if it is not a record low, a higher turnout rate would always render a popular poll greater legitimacy no matter how homogeneous the exercise has become.

Views may be split within the establishment on whether it is still a priority to shore up the turnout as members of the establishment like to iterate that the reformed electoral system has already ensured the stability and prosperity of the SAR.

They urge us to keep our eyes on the "quality" rather than "quantity." So how would the government choose between "quality" and "quantity"?

Obviously, it would be ideal to have the best of both worlds. With a "quality" as officially defined, it would be very satisfying to see this "quality" endorsed by the masses through a polling exercise.

It is small wonder that the constitutional affairs minister is looking to night vibes for a magic wand.