Only one candidate will run in Chief Executive election, Jasper Tsang predicts

Former Legislative Council president Jasper Tsang Yok-sing predicted only one candidate will run into Chief Executive election in March, adding that Beijing has yet to decide who will fill the shoes.

Speaking on a webcast, the veteran pro-Beijing politician said he believed the reason for authorities not to announce the nomination period for the Chief Executive election is due to the Central Government not finding the perfect candidate for it.  

Tsang said if Beijing has already endorsed one candidate for the position, it would be reasonable for Beijing to spread the word allowing everyone to know who the “chosen one” is.  

He believed that Carrie Lam would play ball if Beijing wanted her to step down.  

It also shows that Beijing has yet to find the perfect fit for the job given the race has not started, said Tsang.  

Separately, Tsang said he could not see the benefit of having more than one candidate running for the top spot.  

He said Beijing would not like to see any conflicts within the pro-establishment camp when more than one candidate is running in the election. It could also risk candidates not getting enough nominations to meet the threshold to run.