The Sai Kung District Council (; noted as SK) is the district council for the Sai Kung District in Hong Kong. It is one of 18 such councils. The Sai Kung District Council currently consists of 32 members, of which the district is divided into three constituencies, electing a total of 6 members, 12 district committee members, 12 appointed members, and two ex-officio members who are the Hang Hau and Sai Kung rural committee chairmen. The latest election was held on 10 December 2023.
History The Sai Kung District Council was established on 1 April 1981 under the name of the Sai Kung District Board as the result of the colonial Governor Murray MacLehose's District Administration Scheme reform. The District Board was partly elected with the ex-officio Regional Council members and chairmen of two Rural Committees, Hang Hau and Sai Kung, as well as members appointed by the Governor until 1994 when last Governor Chris Patten refrained from appointing any member.
The Sai Kung District Board became Sai Kung Provisional District Board after the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (HKSAR) was established in 1997 with the appointment system being reintroduced by Chief Executive Tung Chee-hwa. The current Sai Kung District Council was established on 1 January 2000 after the first District Council election in 1999. The appointed seats were abolished in 2015 after the modified constitutional reform proposal was passed by the Legislative Council in 2010.
The Sai Kung District Council is one of the fastest growing councils due to the rapid development of Tseung Kwan O new town in the late 1990s and early 2000s. Traditionally dominated by the rural forces, different political parties also established its presence in the urban area in the 1990s. The pro-Beijing Democratic Alliance for the Betterment of Hong Kong (DAB) doubled their seats from four to eight after absorbed the Hong Kong Progressive Alliance (HKPA) in 2005 and became the largest party in the council. The pro-Beijing Civil Force which has been in alliance with the New People's Party also has substantial presence in the district. The pro-democracy camp in the district was represented by the Democratic Party, until it lost half of its seats after the reformist faction led by Gary Fan quit the party and formed the Neo Democrats in 2010 over the disagreement on the constitutional reform proposal.
In the 2019 election, the pro-democrats scored a landslide victory by taking 26 of the 29 seats in the council, with Neo Democrats becoming the largest party and Concern Group for Tseung Kwan O People's Livelihood (CGPLTKO) the second largest grouping. The pro-Beijing camp was almost completely wiped out from the council, except for the two ex-officio Rural Committee chairmen and three moderate councillors led by Christine Fong.
In the 2023 District Council election, 6 of the 32 seats on the Sai Kung District Council are elected by elected members, 12 are elected by district committees, 12 appointed members, and 2 ex-officio members make up the current Sai Kung District In the Parliament, among the 32 seats, there are 14 independent members, 10 seats from the Democratic Alliance for the Betterment of Hong Kong, 3 seats from the Federation of Trade Unions, 3 seats from the New People Party, 1 seat from the Liberal Party, and 1 seat from the Professional Dynamics. Among the 22 members, the pro-establishment camp holds 22 seats.
Political control Since 1982 political control of the council has been held by the following parties: Camp in control Largest party Years Composition No Overall Control None 1982 - 1985 Pro-government People's Association 1985 - 1988 Pro-government None 1988 - 1991 Pro-government ADPL 1991 - 1994 Pro-Beijing Democratic 1994 - 1997 Pro-Beijing Democratic 1997 - 1999 Pro-Beijing DAB 2000 - 2003 Pro-Beijing DAB 2004 - 2007 Pro-Beijing DAB 2008 - 2011 Pro-Beijing DAB 2012 - 2015 Pro-Beijing DAB 2016 - 2019 Pro-democracy → NOC Neo Democrats → CGPLTKO 2020 - 2023 Pro-Beijing DAB 2024 - 2027
Political makeup
Elections are held every four years. Political party Council members Currentmembers 1994 1999 2003 2007 2011 2015 2019 Independent 6 6 5 4 6 8 14 CGPLTKO - - - - - - 0 SKC - - - - - - 3 TKO Pioneers - - - - - - 2 TKO Shining - - - - - - 1
District result maps
Members represented
Leadership Chairs Since 1985, the chairman is elected by all the members of the board: Chairman Years Political Affiliation Chan Sui-jeung 1981–1984 District Officer Carrie Lam Cheng Yuet-ngor 1984 District Officer Kevin Ho Chi-ming 1984-1985 District Officer William Wan Hon-cheung 1985–1994 PHKS/Heung Yee Kuk→DAB George Ng Sze-fuk 1994–2019 Independent→PA→DAB Ben Chung Kam-lun 2020–2021 Neo Democrats Francis Chau Yin-ming 2021–2023 Independent Kathy Ma King-fan 2024–present District Officer
Vice Chairs Vice Chairman Years Political Affiliation Francis Chau Yin-ming 2000–2007 Independent Wan Yuet-kau 2008–2011 DAB Chan Kwok-kei 2012–2015 DAB Shing Hon-keung 2016–2019 Heung Yee Kuk Ling Man-hoi 2019–2020 DAB Francis Chau Yin-ming 2020–2021 Independent Lui Man-kwong 2021–2023 Neo Democrats→Independent
Notes
References