Former Judge Sam Hou Fai to Stand Unopposed for Macau Leadership

• Gambling
• 10 September 2024

Macau's ex-chief justice is set to soon reach the top leadership role in the Special Administrative Region (SAR). 

On Tuesday, Sam Hou Fai achieved an unprecedented 96% of the nominations to be the exclusive candidate for the chief executive role from a 400-member pro-Beijing election committee. The nomination phase for the SAR’s leadership election concluded last Thursday. 

Current chief executive Ho Iat Seng declared in August that he would not pursue a third term, citing health issues. 

Sam, 62, resigned as president of the Court of Final Appeal, Macau’s top court, prior to his late August announcement that he would campaign for office. He will now face no opposition in the October election, making the voting process largely trivial for the citizens of Macau. 

Worries for the Casino Industry? 

Sam, originally from Zhongshan in Guangdong Province, mainland China, will be the first chief executive of Macau to have been born outside the gambling hub. He will additionally be the first to come from the legal field rather than the business industry. 

The panel’s strong backing for Sam shows his readiness to align with the party's views. Indeed, his opinions regarding the gaming sector resonate with those of the central government in Beijing, which has consistently advocated for the diversification of Macau's economy. 

Beijing accuses the industry of enabling money laundering and capital outflow from the mainland. The government is presently targeting unlawful currency exchanges that enable mainland gamblers to bypass strict restrictions on money transfers. 

Sam emphasized the necessity for Macau to "innovate and reform" in order to tackle challenges facing its economic and political progress. He holds the casino industry accountable for “exerting pressure on societal resources” and limiting career options for youth. 

“For a period of time, the tourism and gaming industry developed in a disorderly manner and expanded wildly,” Sam said at a press briefing last month. “Having one dominant industry is not beneficial for Macau’s long-term development and has had a very negative impact.

“Macau’s long-term development is only possible with the country’s support,” he added, alluding to heightened cooperation with Beijing.

Supportive of Beijing 

Macau possesses its own financial system and a certain level of political independence as a Special Administrative Region under China's one country, two systems framework. Nonetheless, in spite of its capitalism, it has been significantly less resistant to the gradual influence of Beijing compared to Hong Kong, its neighboring SAR across the Pearl River Delta. 

That’s likely because of its demographic composition. Over fifty percent of Macau’s 686,607 residents have migrated from the mainland in recent decades. Conversely, the majority of Hong Kong's residents have been born and brought up in a free-market, liberal democracy.