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Carrie Lam Promises to ‘Listen Humbly’ After Pro-Democracy Election Landslide

The local elections saw a historic high turnout, disproving claims that pro-democracy protesters are just a noisy minority.

Hong Kong leader Carrie Lam has promised that her government will “seriously reflect” after this weekend’s local election results returned massive gains for pro-democracy candidates. Local media reports that 17 of 18 district councils are now controlled by pro-democracy councilors following the first elections since the wave of anti-Beijing protest began. The election, which saw an unprecedented turnout of more than 71 percent, is being seen as a sharp rebuke of Lam’s leadership and a show of support for the protest movement. The governments in Beijing and Hong Kong have previously tried to claim that the protesters are a disruptive and vocal minority. In a statement released Monday, Lam said the government respected the results and that it would “listen to the opinions of members of the public humbly and seriously reflect.” There has been no official comment issued by Beijing, but Foreign Minister Wang Yi, speaking in Japan, told reporters “no matter what happens, Hong Kong is a part of China.”