Veteran civil servant wins race to rule in Hong Kong

DONALD TSANG has effectively won the race to lead Hong Kong.

The veteran civil servant said he had secured a huge majority of nominations from a Beijing committee.

The support prevents two rivals from securing enough nominations to stand.

Mr Tsang will be declared the winner of Hong Kong’s leadership race tomorrow.

The post of chief executive of one of the world’s leading financial centres became available when the unpopular Tung Chee-hwa, appointed chief executive at the end of British rule in 1997, resigned in March.

Hong Kong’s chief executive is not popularly elected but picked by a Beijing-sanctioned group of 796 people.

There was no doubt that Mr Tsang would win because he has the backing of Chinese leaders, but he needed the support of at least 697 committee members to triumph unopposed.