District Councilor-elect Tong Hok-leung from the New People's Party/Civil Force, who won in the Lower Shing Mun constituency of Sha Tin District, said the majority of Hong Kong people opposed the illegal "Occupy Central" campaign.

Tong told China Daily that even though several "umbrella soldiers" won in the election, this does not mean Hong Kong residents support "Occupy" and filibusters at the Legislative Council.

Despite his victory in the district election, Tong, 34, said he was still not satisfied. "I expected around 1,400 votes but I have only 1,209 votes. I have not done my work well and I need to review it," he lamented.

Tong argued that if he had adopted an anti-"Occupy" and anti-filibuster approach, he could have secured even more votes. Similarly, his party comrades who lost marginally by around 100 votes in New Territories East could have won too.

Tong, who was an assistant to Secretary for Home Affairs Lau Kong-wah when Lau was still a lawmaker and district councilor before joining the government, first participated in the district elections in 2007. But he lost that campaign. He came back again this year, better prepared, after serving in the constituency for several years.

Comparing this year with previous district elections, he believes society has changed a lot. In the past, the residents attached great importance to service by the candidates. Today, though district work is still important, people look more at the political positions of the candidates.

The alliance of New People's Party (NPP) and Civil Force has had positive results, with more people than not favoring NPP Chairwoman Regina Ip Lau Suk-yee, he said.

Looking to the future, Tong said he would need to speak out more about current affairs and his views via social media. Since the party lost several district seats and also some financial resources, they need to work harder. This is to prepare for a comeback in constituencies where they lost.

joseph@chinadailyhk.com

(HK Edition 12/04/2015 page7)