Two electoral lists have submitted their respective lists of candidates and political platforms for the upcoming direct legislative election, while the sole list representing the business sector and the sole list representing the professional sector that will run in the upcoming indirect legislative election have also submitted their respective lists of candidates and political platforms.
The four lists submitted their respective lists of candidates and election platforms to the Legislative Assembly Electoral Affairs Commission (CAEAL) on Friday.
The Union for Development (UPD) list, the electoral vehicle of the influential Macau Federation of Trade Unions (commonly known as Gung Luen in Cantonese), has fielded current lawmakers Ella Lei Cheng I and Leong Sun Iok as its first-ranked and second-ranked candidates for the 2025 direct election. Four years ago, the list won two seats when Lei and Leong were the first-ranked and second-ranked candidates.
However, current legislator Si Ka Lon, who was the first-ranked candidate of the Macau United Citizens Association (ACUM) list when it was the top winner in the 2021 direct election as it won three seats, will now run in the 2025 indirect election where he has become a candidate of the sole list for the business sector (which will be elaborated on in this story later).
Consequently, the ACUM list, the electoral vehicle of the influential Alliance for Common People Building Up Macau (API), has now fielded current lawmakers Becky Song Pek Kei and Nick Lei Leong Wong, its second-ranked and third-ranked candidates in the direct election four years ago, as its first-ranked and second-ranked candidates for the 2025 direct election.
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.
The 2025 direct and indirect legislative elections will take place on September 14.
Each direct election list must field at least four and no more than 14 candidates.
The UPD list comprises 12 candidates for the upcoming direct legislative election, while the ACUM list comprises 10 candidates.
The ACUM list was the only electoral list winning three seats in the 2021 direct election when 14 candidacy lists vied for the 14 directly-elected seats at stake. Four years ago, candidates of seven of the 14 lists were elected, winning one, two or three seats respectively.
Only eight candidacy lists will compete for the 14 seats at stake in the 2025 direct election, the smallest number of lists since the first direct legislative election was held in 2001 after the establishment of the Macau Special Administrative Region (MSAR) on December 20, 1999.
The ACUM list first ran in the legislature’s direct election in 2005, when prominent businessman Chan Meng Kam and property developer Ung Choi Kun were elected. Both were re-elected in 2009.
In the 2013 direct election, the ACUM list garnered the highest number of votes, enabling three of its candidates to be elected, namely Chan Meng Kam, Si Ka Lon and Becky Song. Ung Choi Kun did not seek re-election in the 2013 election.
Macau’s elections are based on the continental European proportional representation system, making it rather difficult for one candidacy list to win more than two directly-elected seats.
Chan did not seek re-election in the 2017 direct election, when the camp set up two candidacy lists, the ACUM list headed by Si and the Macau Citizens Development Association (ACDM) list headed by Song. At that time, both lists had one candidate elected each – Si and Song.
In the 2021 direct election, Si and Song returned to run in the same candidacy list, the ACUM list, once again winning three seats, which also enabled the then third-ranked candidate Nick Lei to join the legislature for the first time.
For the upcoming direction election, the ACUM list has fielded current lawmakers Song and Nick Lei as its first-ranked and second-ranked candidates, with newcomer Chan Lai Kei being the third-ranked candidate, who, alongside Song and Nick Lei, is also an API senior board member.
Speaking to reporters after submitting her electoral list’s political platform and list of candidates at the Public Administration Building on Rua do Campo on Friday, Song said that the upcoming direct election could be expected to be very competitive, underlining that her list is aiming to secure at least two seats this time.
Nick Lei told reporters that his list’s political platform calls for the government to improve its system for helping local residents secure employment, adding that many young local people find it difficult to get a job.
The UPD list has run in the legislature’s direct election since 1992, when Macau was still under temporary Portuguese administration.
The UPD list has won one or two seats in every direct legislative election since it first took part in 1992.
Since 2001 when the MSAR held its first direct legislative election, the UPD list has won two seats every time except in the 2013 direct election when it only won one seat.
Ella Lei first became a lawmaker in 2013 through the indirect election, before taking part in the direct election in 2017 when she was the first-ranked candidate of the UPD direct election list. Leong Sun Iok first became a legislator in 2017 when he was the list’s second-ranked candidate. Both were re-elected in 2021.
For the upcoming direction election, the UPD list has fielded current lawmakers Ella Lei and Leong Sun Iok as its first-ranked and second-ranked candidates, with Cheng Ka Man being the third-ranked candidate, who is a lawyer by profession. Cheng was the list’s sixth-ranked candidate four years ago.
Speaking to reporters after submitting her electoral list’s political platform and list of candidates on Friday, Ella Lei said that her list will focus on issues such as promoting the city’s appropriate economic diversification, improving residents’ well-being, and supporting young local people’s personal and career development.
Leong Sun Iok told reporters that his list’s political platform calls for the government to ensure that local residents can secure good employment opportunities available in the city.
Big changes for business & professional sectors
For the 2025 indirect election of the four seats in the industrial, commercial and financial sector, the Union of Macau Business Interests list has fielded two of its sitting lawmakers as its candidates, while Kou Hoi In and Wang Sai Man will not seek re-election this time.
Kou, 72, who is currently the legislature’s president, was the list’s first-ranked candidate four years ago, while Wang was its fourth-ranked candidate.
This will also mean that the legislature will certainly have a new president in the upcoming new four-year term.
The Union of Macau Business Interests list has fielded José Chui Sai Peng and Ip Sio Kai, its second-ranked and third-ranked candidates in the indirect election four years ago, as its first-ranked and second-ranked candidates for the 2025 indirect election, while it has fielded current directly-elected lawmaker Si Ka Lon as its third-ranked candidate.
The list has fielded local businessman Kevin Ho King Lun as its fourth-ranked candidate.
Speaking to reporters on Friday, Chui said that his list will remain committed to serving the city’s business sector, improving its business environment, and promoting its appropriate economic diversification.
For the 2025 indirect election of the professional sector’s three seats, all three sitting lawmakers, Chui Sai Cheong, Vong Hin Fai and Chan Iek Lap, who were the three candidates of the Union of Macau Professionals’ Interests list in the indirect election four years ago, will not seek re-election.
Chui Sai Cheong is currently the legislature’s vice-president.
Instead, the Union of Macau Professionals’ Interests list has fielded appointed lawmaker Iau Teng Pio as its first-ranked candidate for the indirect election, while it has fielded newcomers Vong Hou Piu and Wong Chon Kit as its second-ranked and third-ranked candidates.
Vong is an accountant by profession, while Wong is a dentist by profession whose father was a well-known journalist.
Speaking to reporters on Friday, Iau said that his list will remain committed to ensuring the protection of the rights and benefits of the city’s professionals in various fields while also helping the government advance its appropriate economic diversification drive.
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.
The labour sector is the only sector where more than one list will run in the upcoming indirect election, while only one list will run for each of the other four sectors.
Consequently, while the candidates of the two lists for the labour sector will compete for the sector’s two indirectly-elected seats, all candidates of the other four sectors’ electoral lists are slated to be elected uncontested.
The number of candidates fielded by each indirect election list must be the same as the respective sector’s number of seats. Consequently, each electoral list for the business sector needs to field four candidates while each list for the professional sector is required to field three candidates.
José Chui Sai Peng (second from left), Ip Sio Kai (second from right), Si Ka Lon (left), and Kevin Ho King Lun, the first-, second-, third- and fourth-ranked candidates of the Union of Macau Business Interests list respectively, pose for a photo after submitting the list’s political platform at the Public Administration Building on Friday.
Iau Teng Pio (centre), the first-ranked candidate of the Union of Macau Professionals’ Interests list, speaks to reporters at the Public Administration Building on Friday, flanked by the list’s second-ranked candidate Vong Hou Piu (right) and third-ranked candidate Wong Chon Kit. – Photos courtesy of TDM
