Housewife gets suspended jail term for election boycott post

A 61-year-old housewife was sentenced on Wednesday to two months in prison, suspended for 18 months, for sharing online posts that incited others not to vote in the 2025 Legislative Council General Election.

The defendant, surnamed Ma, pleaded guilty at West Kowloon Magistrates’ Courts to illegally inciting another person not to vote or to cast an invalid vote through a public activity during the election period.

Magistrate Peter Yu Chun-cheung said the Legislative Council election concerns the well-being of all Hong Kong citizens, describing the offense as serious in nature and detrimental to the overall interests of Hong Kong.

He said that even if the defendant had not given careful thought before reposting the content, the court could not ignore the serious consequences caused by the act of forwarding it.

The post shared by Ma was originally published by Tong Wai-hung, who had called on others to boycott the election on social media.

The magistrate had earlier issued a warrant for Tong, who had already left Hong Kong. He is currently wanted by the Independent Commission Against Corruption.