Sam Hou Fai was chosen by the Chief Executive Election Committee to serve as Macao’s next leader yesterday, securing 394 of 400 votes – or 98.5 percent of total votes cast, with only four blank ballots and two absentees recorded.
Outgoing Chief Executive Ho Iat Seng conveyed his congratulations to his successor, expressing confidence that Sam would lead “fresh advances for the MSAR’s next phase of development,” according to an official statement.
Sam, who was the sole candidate, will take the reins on 20 December. The new CE first laid out elements of his political platform on 28 September, noting that he wanted all of Macao to “forge ahead together through upholding fundamental principles and breaking new ground.”
[See more: Sam Hou Fai pledges to reform Macao’s government and economy]
At a post-election press conference, the 62-year-old former judge said: “Right now, Macau is [in] the best period of its development. Let’s grasp the opportunities and meet the challenges, work hard together and reform. We [can] strive for development and prosperity, and build our home in a better way together.”
He pledged that Macao would contribute to national rejuvenation and added that his election as CE left him “full of emotions, because my life’s path has always shared the same fate as the country and Macao.”
He said he had five priorities for his time in office: public service reform; economic diversification; national integration; the cultivating of local talent while attracting highly qualified professionals from further afield; and improving the local standard of living.
[See more: Sam Hou Fai critiques Macao’s shortcomings at his first town hall meeting]
Sam earlier said that Macao’s casino industry needed to “develop in a healthy manner,” with more regulation and an emphasis on operators expanding their offerings besides gambling. He has also been adamant that the SAR’s government needed to be more transparent and efficient, noting that better inter-department cohesion was needed when it came to legislative planning.
Sam was born in Zhongshan, Guangdong province, in 1962. He spent his early career working as a lawyer, and holds a law degree from Beijing University. He also studied Portuguese law and culture at the University of Coimbra in Portugal, and has been living in Macao since 1993.
As Macao’s foremost judge, he headed the SAR’s highest judicial body, the Court of Final Appeal, between Macao’s administrative handover from Portugal to China in December 1999 until late August this year – when it became clear he would be throwing his hat in the ring for the election.
[See more: Sam Hou Fai: Macao’s gaming industry needs ‘healthy, orderly and sustainable’ growth]
Sam, who has said he had always felt “the desire to serve Macao,” formally announced his candidacy for the position of CE on 28 August, one week after Ho declared he would not be running for a second term due to health reasons.
After securing 383 endorsements from the CE Election Committee (out of 400), Sam emerged as the only contender in the 2024 election. This is not unusual in Macao, where all but the SAR’s first election, in 1999, have been one-horse races.
