Hong Kong will hold its next legislative election in December, and until then, the current lawmakers will continue to serve.

They would need to attend extra meetings so that the government’s amendment bills on Beijing’s extensive reform of the local electoral system could be passed in time, Legislative Council President Andrew Leung said on Tuesday. Leung quoted Chief Executive Carrie Lam as saying that the bills would be sent to the legislature in mid-April.

Under Beijing’s edict, Hong Kong’s legislature will be expanded from 70 to 90 members, with just 20 of them elected by popular vote. Election hopefuls will also need to be vetted by national security police and a committee of government officials.

Leung said he supported the decision by the National People’s Congress Standing Committee on Tuesday. The arrangements would reflect the principle of “balanced participation” and enable better cooperation between the legislative and executive branches of government, he said.

“Anyone who loves the country and loves Hong Kong will have the same chance to run for election,” he said.

Democratic Party chairperson Lo Kin-hei said they had not yet decided whether members would participate in future elections. The party needed to think about how to walk with Hongkongers, Lo said, adding that he believed democratic elections were the best way to express the voice of the public.

Raphael Wong of the League of Social Democrats said that only “new pan-democrats” with the approval of Beijing would be allowed to run in elections. True democrats would pay a political price if they were to compromise their principles to win a nomination from Beijing loyalists, he said.

Separately, Chinese legal scholar and former Basic Law Committee member Rao Geping said that moderate opposition politicians should still be allowed to contest Hong Kong polls.

The central government should avoid overcorrecting, and instead “build a platform for communication and dialogue,” Rao wrote in the pro-Beijing Bauhinia magazine.

Last year, Hong Kong authorities postponed the legislative election scheduled for September, citing public health concerns. Chief Executive Carrie Lam said at the time that the race, slated to be held every four years, would be delayed for a year to Sept. 5, 2021.

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