Rural Representative Election

Village Representative Election

A system of village representation has developed in the New Territories over the decades. The arrangements for electing Village Representatives have also evolved over time.

With regard to two cases connected with the election of village representatives, the Court of Final Appeal ruled in December 2000 that the Secretary for Home Affairs, in deciding whether to approve an elected Village Representative, had to consider whether the person elected to represent a village was elected in accordance with electoral arrangements consistent with the Bill of Rights and the Sex Discrimination Ordinance.

To abide by the ruling of the Court of Final Appeal and to ensure that the elections are open and fair, the Government has established a set of new arrangements for Village Representative Elections following a review of the electoral system and extensive public consultation, in particular with the rural community and Heung Yee Kuk.

Since the enactment of the Village Representative Election Ordinance (Cap. 576) in 2003, the Village Representative elections have been brought under statutory control. The Ordinance was renamed as Rural Representative Election Ordinance in 2014. For details of the commencement of the Rural Representative Election Ordinance and related amendments, please refer to the gazette dated 4 April 2014. ( http://www.gld.gov.hk/egazette/pdf/20141814/es1201418145.pdf )

Kaifong Representative Election

Among the 27 Rural Committees in the New Territories, the Kaifong Representatives serve only in the Cheung Chau Rural Committee and Peng Chau Rural Committee of Islands District. Similar to the Resident Representatives, the functions of Kaifong Representatives are to reflect views on local affairs on behalf of Cheung Chau / Peng Chau residents. The Administration, therefore, proposed to rename the Village Representative Election Ordinance (Cap. 576) as Rural Representative Election Ordinance, with a new term “Rural Representative” covering both Village Representative and Kaifong Representative. After the enactment of the Rural Representative Election Legislation (Amendment) Bill 2013 in 2014, the Kaifong Representatives Election to be held in and after 2015 is also required to be conducted in accordance with the law.

Term of Office

The tenure of office of Rural Representatives is four years (for this term of Rural Representatives, the tenure of office runs from 1 April 2023 to 31 July 2027).

Introduction

Type of Rural Representative and their Functions
Village Representative		Kaifong Representative
Indigenous Inhabitant Representative	Resident Representative	Kaifong Representative
is returned by electors of Indigenous / Composite Indigenous Village. to reflect views on the affairs of an indigenous village on behalf of the indigenous inhabitants of that Village to deal with all affairs relating to the lawful traditional rights and interests, and the traditional way of life, of those indigenous inhabitants.	is returned by electors of Existing Village. to reflect views on the affairs of a village on behalf of the residents of that village. shall not deal with any affairs relating to the lawful traditional rights and interests of indigenous inhabitants.	is returned by electors of Cheung Chau / Peng Chau Market Town. to reflect views on the affairs of the respective Market Towns (i.e. Cheung Chau / Peng Chau) on behalf of the residents.

Number of Seats
Village Representative Election		Kaifong Representative Election
Indigenous Inhabitant Representative Election	Resident Representative Election	Kaifong Representative Election
603 Indigenous / Composite Indigenous Villages Total 789 seats	695 Existing Villages Total 695 seats	2 Market Towns Total 56 seats Cheung Chau : 39 seats Peng Chau : 17 seats

Eligibility Requirements for Nomination
A person will only be eligible to be nominated as a candidate in the Indigenous Inhabitant Representative Election, the Resident Representative Election or the Kaifong Representative Election if he/she meets the following requirements (a person is only allowed to stand as a candidate in one Rural Area*):
Eligibility Requirements for Nomination in Indigenous Inhabitant Representative Election (IIR)	Eligibility Requirements for Nomination in Resident Representative Election (ReR)	Eligibility Requirements for Nomination in Kaifong Representative Election (KFR)
an indigenous inhabitant of the Indigenous / Composite Indigenous Village; elector for the Indigenous or Composite Indigenous Village; aged 21 or above; a Hong Kong permanent resident ; ordinarily resides in Hong Kong; nominated by at least five registered electors from that Village; not be disqualified from voting at the election by virtue of section 14 of the Rural Representative Election Ordinance (Cap. 576); and not be disqualified from being nominated as a candidate at the election, or from being elected as an IIR for the Indigenous or Composite Indigenous Village by virtue of section 23 of the Rural Representative Election Ordinance (Cap. 576) or any other law.	elector for the Existing Village; aged 21 or above; a Hong Kong permanent resident; a resident of the Village for the 6 years immediately preceding the nomination; nominated by at least five registered electors from that Existing Village; not be disqualified from voting at the election by virtue of section 14 of the Rural Representative Election Ordinance (Cap. 576); and not be disqualified from being nominated as a candidate at the election, or from being elected as a ReR for the Existing Village by virtue of section 23 of the Rural Representative Election Ordinance (Cap. 576) or any other law.	elector for the Market Town; aged 21 or above; a Hong Kong permanent resident; a resident of the Market Town for the 6 years immediately preceding the nomination; nominated by at least five registered electors from that Market Town; not be disqualified from voting at the election by virtue of section 14 of the Rural Representative Election Ordinance ; and not be disqualified from being nominated as a candidate at the election, or from being elected as a KFR for the Market Town by virtue of section 23 of the Rural Representative Election Ordinance (Cap. 576) or any other law.

*Rural Area means an Existing Village, an Indigenous Village, a Composite Indigenous Village or a Market Town