Announcing the guidelines for the December 19 polls, the chairman of the Electoral Affairs Commission (EAC), Barnabas Fung, said on Monday there will be more than 600 polling stations around town.
But no special arrangements will be made for people who are under home or hotel quarantine. Officials won’t set up polling centres at quarantine hotels.
As for a proposal to allow Hong Kong residents who are on the mainland to vote, Fung said the guidelines made no mention of it because it’s still being studied by officials.
“If [the border voting booths] are set up, the secretary for constitutional and mainland affairs will of course notify me, but until this moment, he hasn’t told me,” he said.
Fung also said people who have a fever will be allowed to vote at polling stations.
“As to people with a fever, we’ll have a special arrangement, so that they will go into a special voting booth to cast the vote. First, it’s to ensure the duration will be short. Secondly, [the booth] will be cleansed after the voting,” he told reporters.
He believes it’s a reasonable approach based on people’s rights and risk assessment.
The EAC chief also said the government has raised the idea of requiring voters to use the LeaveHomeSafe app to enter polling stations, but nothing is set in stone yet.
Polling stations will be open from 8:30am to 10:30pm on December 19, compared with 7:30am to 10:30pm previously.
