2026 President of the Hong Kong Legislative Council election

Election for the President of the
Eighth Legislative Council

←  2022 8 January 2026 2030 →

Majority party Minority party   Candidate Starry Lee Chan Chun-ying Party DAB Independent Constituency Kowloon Central Finance Votes 47 (52.80%) 42 (47.20%)

President before election Andrew Leung BPA Elected President Starry Lee DAB

The election for the president of the Eighth Legislative Council took place on 8 January 2026 for members of the 8th Legislative Council of Hong Kong to among themselves elect the president of the Legislative Council of Hong Kong for the duration of the council. Starry Lee, a serving member of the Standing Committee of the National People's Congress and former chairlady of the flagship pro-Beijing party DAB, defeated pro-business Chan Chun-ying and was elected as the president.

Background

Andrew Leung, the two-term president of the legislature, retired from the Legislative Council before the general election begins citing age. Since then, Starry Lee, Chan Chun-ying, Martin Liao, and Chan Kin-por emerged as possible successors. ^[1] After both Liao and Chan Kin-por announced their intention to stand down, the speakership is considered to be held by either Lee or Chan Chun-ying. Chan is seen more likely to win the race as Lee is also a member of the Standing Committee of the National People's Congress (NPCSC) which would require her attendance in Beijing and could be suspected for a conflict of role. ^[2]

By Christmas it is expected that Chan would win unopposed without challenges from within the pro-Beijing camp. However, Lee hinted her wish to fight on by commenting that she could concurrently serve as the president of the legislature and a member of the NPCSC. ^[2] Both Chan and Lee submitted their nomination by the end of the period on 2 January. This is the first contested election since the 2016 race, and the first between pro-Beijing members. ^[3]

Procedures

According to Article 71 of the Hong Kong Basic Law and Rule 4 of the Rules of Procedure of the Legislative Council, the president of the Legislative Council has to be a Chinese citizen of 40 years old or above, a permanent resident of Hong Kong with no right of abode in any foreign country, and has ordinarily resided in Hong Kong for not less than 20 years continuously. Schedule 1 of the Rules of Procedure of the Legislative Council stipulates the procedures of the election for president. The clerk to the Legislative Council will prepare a list of all the nominations in the order of receipt and distribute to all members at least two clear days before the day of the election. Before the election, candidates will be able to present their manifesto and answer questions in a special forum.

Candidates

Candidate	Party affiliation		Political camp	Born	Political office
Starry Lee Wai-king		DAB	Pro-Beijing	13 March 1974 (age 51) Hong Kong	Member of Legislative Council for Kowloon West (2008–2012), District Council (Second) (2012–2021), Kowloon Central (since 2022) Chairman of House Committee (2016–2025) Member of the Executive Council (2012–2016) Chairman of the DAB (2015–2023)
Ronick Chan Chun-ying		Independent	Pro-Beijing	1961 (age 64–65) Hong Kong	Member of Legislative Council for Finance (since 2016) Chairman of Finance Committee (2022–2025)

Results

According to media reports, the election was conducted under a free vote, despite party members could have still been whipped. DAB party grandees are said to have made strong effort and lobbying to secure sufficient support for Lee. ^[4] Lee is believed to have the support of main parties, including DAB, FTU, Liberal, FEW, NTAS and at least five independents, while Chan was backed by mostly BPA, pro-business members, and independents. ^[5] Eventually, Starry Lee was narrowly elected with 47 votes, a majority of 5, defeating Chan who secured 42 votes. ^{[3] [4]} Hoey Simon Lee, who was expected to support Chan, did not cast his vote due to a flight delay. There are also rumours that some voted in favour of Lee despite seconding Chan's nomination. ^[6]

Lee thus became the second NPCSC member to be elected to the presidency after Rita Fan. Former opposition member Sin Chung-kai said the role of the president has shifted from referee to captain, ^[7] while former veteran and chair of NPP Regina Ip said Starry Lee may eye for the position of Chief Executive, ^[8] following the path of Macu's leader Ho Iat-seng. Chan was later elected to succeed Lee as the chairman of the House Committee.

Candidate		Ballots in favour
		Votes	%
	Starry Lee Y	47	52.80
	Chan Chun-ying	42	47.20
Turnout		89	98.89

References

1. "主席9年 74歲梁君彥不選立會 傳4人有潛力接任 七旬馬逢國亦不逐連任". Ming Pao (in Traditional Chinese). 30 September 2025. Retrieved 30 September 2025.
2. 追光者報道 (29 December 2025). "立法會新主席有變數？李慧琼公開稱立法會主席與人大常委角色沒有實質衝突". 追光者 Pulse HK News (in Chinese (Taiwan)). Retrieved 22 January 2026.
3. "Starry Lee wins Hong Kong Legco presidency after 5-vote margin over Ronick Chan". South China Morning Post. 8 January 2026. Retrieved 22 January 2026.
4. "李慧琼贏陳振英 背後拉票力量9：1？". Hong Kong Economic Times (in Traditional Chinese). Retrieved 27 January 2026.
5. 李先知 (9 January 2026). "聞風筆動：李慧琼險勝圓心願 爭特首言之過早". Ming Pao (in Traditional Chinese). Archived from the original on 13 January 2026. Retrieved 27 January 2026.
6. "大棋盤 | 陳振英疑「走票」 自由搏擊風氣可延伸？政圈關注李慧琼日後劍指特首". 星島頭條 (in Chinese (Hong Kong)). 9 January 2026. Retrieved 27 January 2026.
7. 追光者報道 (9 January 2026). "逾6成立法會議員兼任人大政協 評論：立法會監督角色變配合 主席由球證變隊長". 追光者 Pulse HK News (in Chinese (Taiwan)). Retrieved 22 January 2026.
8. 王晉璇 (9 January 2026). "立法會主席｜葉劉：李慧琼若連做兩屆或選特首 憂民建聯坐大". 香港01 (in Chinese (Hong Kong)). Retrieved 22 January 2026.