Andrew Leung elected as president of HKSAR's 7th-term LegCo

HONG KONG, Jan. 4 (Xinhua) -- Andrew Leung Kwan-yuen was elected as the president of the seventh-term Legislative Council (LegCo) of China's Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (HKSAR) on Tuesday.

The nomination period for the office of the LegCo president closed at 5:00 p.m. local time on Tuesday.

As there is only one valid nomination, the LegCo Secretariat of the HKSAR declared Leung elected as the president of the seventh-term LegCo.

The seventh-term LegCo election, the first since improvements to the HKSAR electoral system and the implementation of the principle of "patriots administering Hong Kong," is of pioneering significance, Leung said when meeting the press after his election.

Noting that Hong Kong is still facing various challenges, including economic difficulties caused by the COVID-19 pandemic, he said the seventh-term LegCo should redouble efforts to uphold the principle of "patriots administering Hong Kong," safeguard national security, monitor and assist the HKSAR government's work and address livelihood issues.

The oath-taking ceremony for 90 members of the seventh-term LegCo of China's HKSAR was held on Monday.

The new LegCo is expected to hold its first session on Jan. 12.