A CUHK poll has found that Chief Executive Leung Chun-ying’s approval ratings are poor and have been for three monthsIn a poll released today it has been revealed that Chief Executive Leung Chun-ying’s popularity is low as his performance rating remains well below the passing mark.
Leung scored 39.1 on a scale of 0 to 100 in the Chinese University poll, and for the last three months his score has consistently been below 40. A passing, or acceptable, grade is seen as 50.
Some 743 people were interviewed for the poll from October 27 to November 1. The university’s Institute of Asia-Pacific Studies tracks the monthly changes in the public approval ratings of Leung and his government’s performance.
The poll also found that 42.1 per cent of the 743 respondents said that they were dissatisfied with the government. Only 14.5 per cent said that they were satisfied. Distrust in Leung’s government dropped from 33.9 per cent in September to 31.5 per cent last month. Ratings for the two top officials – Chief Secretary Carrie Lam Cheng Yuet-ngor and Justice Secretary Rimsky Yuen Kwok-keung – have also fallen, with their latest scores at 52.1 and 46 respectively (on the same scale of 0-100). Only Financial Secretary John Tsang Chun-wah’s rating showed a slight increase, rising from 60 in September to 61.6 in October.
The Chinese University’s Centre for Communication and Public Opinion Survey, commissioned by the Hong Kong Economic Journal (HKEJ), has also conducted a pre-chief executive election poll, and around 1,000 Hongkongers over the age of 18 were interviewed between October 26 and November 2. According to the HKEJ, the results showed that the potential chief executive candidate Tsang ranked first with 28.4 per cent. He was followed by retired judge Woo Kwok-hing with 13.5 per cent, Jasper Tsang Yok-sing with 11.4 per cent and Lam with 10.3 per cent. Leung came fifth with 9.5 per cent, and the New People’s Party lawmaker Regina Ip Lau Suk-yee came last with 8.4 per cent of the votes.
Last month, Woo, 70, became the first person to officially announce his candidacy for the job of chief executive. Other parties that want to run for next year’s chief executive election, due to be held March 26, will be expected to announce their candidacy by December 11.