More than 40% of Hong Kong voters do not plan to vote in the city’s next election, while over 50% of self-identified pro-democrats may cast blank ballots, an Apple Daily poll has found.

The poll, conducted last week, asked 1,002 adults whether they would vote in the next Legislative Council election in light of Beijing’s electoral reforms, which were implemented by the city’s legislature last month. Forty-two percent said they did not plan to vote, while 40% said they did.

The number of non-voters increased slightly from the 40% found in an April survey, when 42% said they did plan to vote.

Of the respondents who said they voted for pro-democracy candidates in 2019, 60% said there was only a “small chance” they would cast a ballot in the next election – a slight increase of two percentage points compared to April’s results.

The proportion who said they might cast blank votes or spoiled ballots remained steady, with 32% saying there was a “large chance” they might do so, while 51% said the chance was small. Less than 1% of the respondents said they cast a blank ballot in the 2019 district council election.

Supporters of pro-democracy candidates showed a greater willingness to cast blank ballots, with 53% saying the likelihood was high. However, that was 3% below April’s results.

Those who said they support localist candidates were the most willing to cast blank ballots, at 68%.

In April, the Hong Kong government said it would propose a bill that would make it a crime to urge others to cast blank or spoiled ballots, or not vote at all. Offenders could face up to three years in jail.

The survey was conducted by the Hong Kong Public Opinion Research Institute between June 7 and 10. Chung Kim-wah, the institute’s deputy chief executive, said pro-democracy supporters have lost faith in the city’s electoral system following the arrest and suppression of activists, as well as the ban on the annual June 4 candlelight vigil.

“A lot of people are skeptical about why they should legitimize an electoral system that is rigged and has no chance of creating a reasonable outcome,” Chung said. The public’s willingness to vote may decrease even further if more election candidates are disqualified in future, he added.

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