Hong Kong municipal election, 1952

Hong Kong municipal election, 1952

30 May 1952

Turnout 35.0%   Nominee Brook Bernacchi William Louey Party Reform KRA Popular vote 1,168 1,068 Percentage 17.83% 16.31%

Elected Members Brook Bernacchi William Louey

The 1952 Hong Kong Urban Council election was held on 30 May 1952 for the 2 elected seats of the Urban Council of Hong Kong. It was the first Urban Council election since the end of the Japanese occupation of Hong Kong. The last election was held in 1940. Barrister Brook Bernacchi of the Reform Club of Hong Kong and William Louey, chief manager of the Kowloon Motor Bus Company won the two seats.

Overview

It was the first Urban Council election after the Second World War. Prior to the election, the former Governor Sir Mark Aitchison Young suggested a further constitutional reform by a new elected Municipal body replacing the Urban Council. The Young Plan was strongly opposed by the conservatives and the then Governor Sir Alexander Grantham. At the end, the Governor restored the election for two seats in the Urban Council which had existed before the war after the Young Plan was shelved.

The polling station was held at the Murray Parade Ground. Some 3,368 men cast ballots, about one-thirds of the 9,700 registered electorates, lower than the expectation. The China Mail commented it as "scarcely be regarded as a convincing sign that the Colony is desperately anxious to enjoy extended franchise."^[1] Brook Bernacchi of the Reform Club of Hong Kong and William Louey of the Kowloon Residents' Association, chief manager of the Kowloon Motor Bus Company, were elected out of nine candidates. Pro-Communist barrister Percy Chen was one of the candidates. He urged voters to treat the election as a referendum to press London for a further constitutional reform promised by Young. He ranked sixth of the nine candidates by getting 461 votes. The other Reform Club candidate Woo Pak-chuen lost the race by only 38 votes.^[2]

Results

Urban Council Election 1952^[3]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±
	Reform	Brook Bernacchi	1,168	17.84
	KRA	William Louey	1,068	16.31
	Reform	Woo Pak-chuen	1,031	15.75
	Independent	Tso Tsun-on	1,017	15.53
	Independent	Peter Sin	866	13.23
	CRA	Percy Chen	461	7.04
	Independent	G. S. Kennedy-Skipton	386	5.89
	Independent	Kong Chi-nai	307	4.69
	Independent	Daniel Chen	244	3.73
Turnout			3,368	35.0

Citations

1. "Council Election". China Mail. 31 May 1952.
2. Reform Club of Hong Kong (1949). Memorandum and articles of Association of the Reform Club of Hong Kong : incorporated the 20th day of January, 1949. Ts'o & Hodgson.
3. "Steady Stream Of Voters At Urban Council Election". China Mail. 30 May 1952.

References

• Pepper, Suzanne (2008). Keeping Democracy at Bay:Hong Kong and the Challenge of Chinese Political Reform. Rowman & Littlefield.