TY - JOUR
T1 - The campaign imperative
T2 - Election strategies and the material culture of urban electioneering in Hong Kong
AU - Scott, Janet Lee
N1 - Acknowledgements:
The author would like to express her appreciation to all members of the Hong Kong Transition Project, especially its Principal Investigator Dr. Michael DeGolyer, and to Ms. Cheung Pui Ki for her assistance in the preparation of this essay. Gratitude is also due to Prof. William Jankowiak and to the anonymous reviewers for their helpful advice. Campaign materials and observations from the 1995 and the 2000 LegCo elections were collected by the author and by the Hong Kong Transition Project. All statistics are courtesy of the Hong Kong Transition Project. An earlier version of this essay was presented at the Second Annual Meeting of the Hong Kong Sociological Association, "Crossing Boundaries in Social Research," November 25, 2000, at the Hong Kong University of Science and Technology. Examples used in this paper were chosen from the two elections, and should not be taken as representing the entire range of possibilities employed by candidates. It should also be stressed that, while examples exemplify urban campaignig contexts, campaigning in Hong Kong's New Territories is equally exciting and active. The examples chosen for this paper reflect no particular political or social perspective, but illustrate campaigning styles and possibilities.
Publisher copyright:
© 2004 The Institute, Inc.
PY - 2004/6
Y1 - 2004/6
N2 - Elections and campaigns for public office are now common features of life in modern urban settings. A particularly vibrant example set in a Chinese context is that of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (SAR), where political reforms have resulted in the increasing importance of elections and election campaigning. Since 1982, political parties and candidates have devised ever more sophisticated techniques of self-presentation to meet the demands of a knowledgeable electorate increasingly involved in the political process. The techniques of traditional electioneering flourish in this urban Chinese context, supported by an extraordinary complement of material culture both creative and individualistic. The Legislative Council elections of 1995 and 2000 have demonstrated the critical importance of these campaign techniques and material supports, providing lessons about elections and democracy from Hong Kong's urban experience. Further, the ongoing development of village self-government and democracy suggest the wider relevance of these lessons for understanding potential future political developments in greater China.
AB - Elections and campaigns for public office are now common features of life in modern urban settings. A particularly vibrant example set in a Chinese context is that of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (SAR), where political reforms have resulted in the increasing importance of elections and election campaigning. Since 1982, political parties and candidates have devised ever more sophisticated techniques of self-presentation to meet the demands of a knowledgeable electorate increasingly involved in the political process. The techniques of traditional electioneering flourish in this urban Chinese context, supported by an extraordinary complement of material culture both creative and individualistic. The Legislative Council elections of 1995 and 2000 have demonstrated the critical importance of these campaign techniques and material supports, providing lessons about elections and democracy from Hong Kong's urban experience. Further, the ongoing development of village self-government and democracy suggest the wider relevance of these lessons for understanding potential future political developments in greater China.
UR - https://www.jstor.org/stable/40553514
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=15244342740&partnerID=8YFLogxK
M3 - Journal article
AN - SCOPUS:15244342740
SN - 0894-6019
VL - 33
SP - 383
EP - 419
JO - Urban Anthropology and Studies of Cultural Systems and World Economic Development
JF - Urban Anthropology and Studies of Cultural Systems and World Economic Development
IS - 2-4
ER -