Carrie Lam, a 59-year-old civil servant, was elected as Hong Kong's next chief executive on Sunday, after receiving an overwhelming number of votes from 12,000 strong committee members. Lam is the first woman to be elected to the highest executive post in the semi-autonomous city.

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Lam secured a total of 777 votes, while her closest competitor John Tsang received only 365 votes. Woo Kwok-hing, another candidate in the race for the top post, received only 21 votes.

At her acceptance speech, Lam promised to work towards making Hong Kong a more peaceful city and get rid of what she described as "divisive politics" plaguing the international financial hub.   

"Hong Kong, our home, is suffering from quite a serious divisiveness and has accumulated a lot of frustrations. My priority will be to heal the divide," she said. The new leader gave a stern message to pro-democracy supporters.                 

"I too want more democracy in Hong Kong," she asserted. "But Hong Kong is facing a lot of serious problems. So why don't we start with the easier subjects?"  

Lam's victory is seen as a result of Beijing's interference in Hong Kong election

While many have described Lam's victory as a historic moment, China's critics alleged that her election is yet another symbol of the Asian giant's growing interference in the internal matters of Hong Kong.

To prove their case, critics have resorted to opinion polls, which claimed that John Tsang was the clear public favorite and enjoyed unanimous support among Hong Kong's masses. Lam's victory, according to critics, entails that Beijing wanted someone who is a pro-Chinese and can implement their tough policies to quell down the pro-democracy wave in the former British colony.

Since 2014, Hong Kong has been witnessing what political pundit have called "Umbrella protests," protest for the Chinese leadership to hold free and fair elections and grant more democratic rights to citizens of the semi-autonomous city.

Last year, the pro-democracy wave once again resurrected in the former British colony, after two pro-independent lawmakers were barred from the legislature following an oath taking fiasco.

Hong Kong officially became part of Mainland China in 1996 under an agreement with the British, which ruled the city for more than 100 years. According to the agreement, Beijing has to ensure that Hong Kong remains a semi-autonomous city and that all its democratic rights are preserved.

TagsHong Kong, Carrie Lam, Hong Kong election, china, China and Hong Kong