A total of nine electoral lists had submitted registered voters’ signatures endorsing their respective candidacies for the upcoming direct legislative election to the Legislative Assembly Electoral Affairs Commission (CAEAL) before the submission deadline at 5:30 p.m. on Friday.
The commission made the announcement in a statement on Friday evening.
The direct and indirect legislative elections will take place on September 14. There are no political parties in Macau, but electoral “lists” established or re-established a few weeks before the elections held every four years.
The officially required maximum is 500 nomination signatures of registered voters while the minimum number is 300. Each registered voter can only endorse one candidacy list.
The commission is now verifying the validity of the nominations submitted by the nine electoral lists. Friday’s statement noted that the commission will announce its decision by June 15 (Sunday) as to whether to accept the nine list’s candidacy.
The 33-member Legislative Assembly (AL) comprises 14 deputies directly elected by universal suffrage, 12 deputies indirectly elected by association representatives and seven deputies appointed by the chief executive after the direct and indirect elections.
In the direct election four years ago, 14 candidacy lists vied for the 14 directly elected seats at stake.
Even if the nine electoral lists are all finally accepted to run in the upcoming direct election, the number of lists this time would be the smallest since the first direct legislative election was held in 2001 after the establishment of the Macau Special Administrative Region (MSAR) on December 20, 1999.
In the 2001 direct election, 15 candidacy lists competed for the 10 seats at stake at that time, while 18 lists vied for the 12 seats at stake in the 2005 direct election.
In the 2009 direct election, 16 candidacy lists competed for the 12 seats at stake, while 20 lists vied for the 14 seats at stake in the 2013 direct election.
In the 2017 direct election, 24 candidacy lists competed for the 14 seats at stake.
Friday’s statement by the commission did not mention the names of the nine electoral lists that had submitted nomination signatures endorsing their respective candidacy for the upcoming direct election.
According to previous news reports, the respective representatives of five electoral lists spoke to reporters after submitting nomination signatures on Tuesday last week, while the respective representatives of two electoral lists spoke to journalists after submitting nomination signatures on Thursday last week.
Two electoral lists separately issued their respective statements last week announcing their submissions of candidacy nomination signatures.
The five electoral lists that submitted their respective nomination signatures on Tuesday last week comprise the Progress Promotion Union (UPP) list, the Macau Creating People’s Livelihood Force list, the Power of Synergy list, the Alliance for a Happy Home list, and the New Hope list.
The two electoral lists that submitted their respective nomination signatures on Thursday last week comprise the Macau-Guangdong Union (UMG) list and the Mutual Help Grassroots list.
The two lists that announced their submissions of nomination signatures comprise the Union for Development (UPD) list and the Macau United Citizens Association (ACUM) list.
Among the nine electoral lists, candidates of seven lists were elected in the 2021 direct election.
The Mutual Help Grassroots list ran in the legislature’s direct election in 2017, but failed to win a seat. Afterwards, the list intended to run in the direct legislative election four years ago, but failed to obtain the minimum number of 300 nominations.
The Macau Creating People’s Livelihood Force list, if its candidacy green-lighted by the commission, will run in the direct legislative election for the first time.
The Progress Promotion Union (UPP) list, the electoral vehicle of the Macau General Union of Neighbourhood Associations (commonly known as Kai Fong in Cantonese), won two seats four years ago – current lawmakers Leong Hong Sai and Ngan Iek Hang.
The Power of Synergy list won one seat four years ago – current legislator Ron Lam U Tou, who is a senior board member of local think tank Macau Synergy Association.
The Alliance for a Happy Home list, the electoral vehicle of the Macau Women’s General Association (commonly known as Fu Luen in Cantonese), won two seats four years ago – current lawmakers Wong Kit Cheng and Ma Io Fong.
The New Hope list, the electoral vehicle of the Macau Civil Servants Association (ATFPM), won two seats four years ago – current lawmakers José Maria Pereira Coutinho and Che Sai Wang.
The Macau-Guangdong Union list, the electoral vehicle of the Macau Jiangmen Communal Society, won two seats four years ago – current lawmakers Zheng Anting and Lo Choi In.
The Union for Development (UPD) list, the electoral vehicle of the Macau Federation of Trade Unions (commonly known as Gung Luen in Cantonese), won two seats four years ago – current lawmakers Ella Lei Cheng I and Leong Sun Iok.
The Macau United Citizens Association (ACUM) list, the electoral vehicle of the Alliance for Common People Building Up Macau (API), was the big winner in the 2021 direct election when it won three seats – current lawmakers Si Ka Lon, Becky Song Pek Kei and Nick Lei Leong Wong.
The Alliance for Common People Building Up Macau, one of the city’s biggest community associations, is generally regarded as representing the city’s sizeable Fujianese community.
According to previous news reports, the Macau Creating People’s Livelihood Force list is represented by Tim Wong Tak Loi, who heads a string of Macau-Myanmar associations.
The Mutual Help Grassroots list is represented by Wong Wai Man, commonly dubbed Captain Macau by netizens. Wong heads the grassroots Macau Bar Benders Association.
Meanwhile, Friday’s statement by the commission also announced that six lists had submitted registered voters’ signatures endorsing their respective candidacy for the upcoming indirect legislative election before the submission deadline on Friday.
The legislature’s 12 indirectly-elected seats comprise four seats representing the city’s industrial, commercial and financial sector, three seats from the professional sector, two seats from the labour sector, two seats from the cultural and sports sector, and one seat from the social services and educational sector.
According to local media reports last week, two lists for the labour sector submitted nomination signatures, while only one list submitted nomination signatures for each of the other four sectors.
Consequently, while candidates to be chosen by the two lists for the labour sector are slated to compete for the sector’s two seats, while all candidates of the other four sectors’ electoral lists are slated to be elected uncontested.
Pedestrians walk past the Public Administration Building on Rua do Campo yesterday, with a banner promoting the upcoming direct and indirect legislative election on September 14. – Photo: Tony Wong
