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Willa Wu

A series of consequential political developments and controversies made 2025 a significant year for Hong Kong.
Hong Kong tycoon Li Ka-shing’s company CK Hutchison Holdings was caught in the crossfire of US-China tensions over a deal to sell its Panama Canal ports, which was eventually put on hold under pressure from Beijing.
Locally, the city held its second Legislative Council election under Beijing’s “patriots-only” overhaul, with the voter turnout slightly surpassing the previous record low.
By the end of the year, former media boss Jimmy Lai Chee-ying was convicted in a high-profile national security trial, which again sparked a war of words between Beijing and several Western countries.
Here is what you need to know about Hong Kong’s major political developments this year.
Panama port sale
In March, CK Hutchison Holdings, a Hong Kong conglomerate, disclosed a deal to sell its Panama Canal port interests to a BlackRock-led consortium.
The announcement drew the ire of the central government, which called the deal “a betrayal of all Chinese people” amid broader Sino-US frictions, as President Donald Trump repeatedly raised the possibility of retaking the canal.
Beijing eventually launched an antitrust probe into the deal while pressing for Chinese investors, including state-owned shipping giant Cosco, to join the buyer consortium. The conglomerate has since put the port sale on hold amid the ongoing investigation.

New liaison director
Zhou Ji was appointed director of Beijing’s liaison office in Hong Kong, succeeding Zheng Yanxiong.
Breaking with tradition, Zhou made his first public appearance two days after his appointment by carrying out community visits to Sham Shui Po and Tsing Yi. This was followed by an unusual reciprocal meeting by Chief Executive John Lee Ka-chiu.
Observers said that Zhou’s approach and the latest liaison office line-up – a new director with local government and corporate experience, helped by deputies with diplomatic networks – reflected Beijing’s shifting emphasis on the city’s economic development and its gateway role for mainland Chinese firms to expand overseas.
New US consul invites opposition figures
The United States consulate in Hong Kong also saw a leadership change in August, with Julie Eadeh succeeding Gregory May.
But Eadeh soon faced heavy criticism from Beijing after she invited opposition figures Anson Chan Fang On-sang and Emily Lau Wai-hing to her inaugural reception.
Cui Jianchun, commissioner of the foreign ministry’s office in Hong Kong, subsequently laid down four “red lines” for her during a meeting, including a warning not to meet anyone that an envoy “should not meet with”.
Veto of same-sex partnership bill
In September, the legislature voted down a bill that would have recognised same-sex partnerships, despite a landmark 2023 court ruling requiring the government to draft laws defining the “core rights” of same-sex couples by October 27.
The veto marked the first time a government bill had failed to get Legislative Council approval since Beijing overhauled the city’s electoral system to only have “patriots administering Hong Kong”.
Members of the LGBTQ community expressed disappointment, saying the move sent a “troubling” signal to both the city and the international community that court rulings might be disregarded and individual dignity overlooked.
The government has yet to come up with a counterproposal, even as the deadline passed.

Legco election
Hong Kong concluded its second Legco election under Beijing’s “patriots-only” overhaul on December 7, as the city was still reeling from the deadly Tai Po fire that occurred just more than a week before the poll.
It drew a turnout of 31.9 per cent following the government’s all-out push to boost voter participation, slightly above the record low of 30.2 per cent four years ago.
The new 90-seat legislature, set to begin its term on January 1, will feature as many as 40 newcomers, including Olympic gold medallist Vivian Kong Man-wai.
A record-high proportion of incumbent lawmakers announced they would not seek another term. That included all 12 legislators aged 70 or above, such as New People’s Party chairwoman Regina Ip Lau Suk-yee.
Jimmy Lai’s trial
In December, three Hong Kong judges who presided over former media boss Jimmy Lai’s high-profile national security trial for more than 1½ years convicted him on all charges, ruling that he had used his tabloid newspaper and international connections to push for foreign intervention and sanctions against the local and central governments.
The 78-year-old founder of the now-defunct Apple Daily, who has spent most of the past five years in solitary confinement, had denied two counts of conspiracy to collude with foreign forces and a third of conspiracy to print seditious articles.
Several Western countries, including the United States, the United Kingdom and the European Union, had raised concerns over the guilty verdict, as Beijing slammed them for disrespecting the city’s rule of law and judicial independence.
Hong Kong marked the fifth anniversary of the Beijing-imposed national security law in June.
Xia Baolong, director of the Hong Kong and Macau Affairs Office, warned that there were still people who were determined to smear the law or threaten authorities with new forms of “soft resistance”.


Dissolution of Democratic Party
The Democratic Party, once Hong Kong’s largest opposition group, dissolved on December 14 after 31 years, marking the end of an era.
Although party chairman Lo Kin-hei stopped short of revealing the reasons behind the dissolution, he made a nod to the political environment.
Former party head Yeung Sum said the organisation faced “irresistible force” and had decided to disband after assessing the situation.
The party’s dissolution removes what little remained of the city’s major political opposition following the League of Social Democrats’ similar move in June and the Civic Party’s wind-up in 2023.


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Hong Kong politics

Jimmy Lai verdict and Panama port saga: what shaped Hong Kong’s 2025 political scene

The planned Panama port sale was among the stories that made headlines this year. Photo: Reuters

Zhou Ji, director of Beijing’s liaison office, took up the role earlier this year. Photo: AP

In September, the legislature voted down a bill that would have recognised same-sex partnerships. Photo: Felix Wong

Who died in 2025? The prominent figures Hong Kong said goodbye to

Hong Kong singer-songwriter Khalil Fong. Photo: Handout

Visitors attend “A Light Among Us”, a memorial exhibition for Lee Shau Kee. Handout: Sun Yeung

Charles Ho was awarded the Grand Bauhinia Medal in 2014. Photo: Felix Wong

Food critic Chua Lam was one of the “Four Talents of Hong Kong”. Photo: Edmond So

“Benz Hung” was known as the “King of Supporting Actors”. Photo: Instagram/benz_hui

Toy industrialist Lam Leung-time designed the cheerful, buoyant yellow rubber duck in 1948. Photo: Nora Tam

Gregory So served as the city’s secretary for commerce and economic development from 2011 to 2017. Photo: K. Y. Cheng

Beijing, Hong Kong slam G7 over criticism of Jimmy Lai trial verdict

A national flag flies outside the Commissioner’s Office of China’s Foreign Ministry in Hong Kong. Photo: Warton Li

News

Hong Kong

Politics

The Post rounds up major political events that made 2025 a significant year for the city


The Post rounds up major political events that made 2025 a significant year for the city.


Jimmy Lai verdict and Panama port saga: what shaped Hong Kong’s 2025 political scene

.css-1c6uqr6{color:inherit;font-weight:inherit;font-size:inherit;font-family:inherit;line-height:inherit;overflow-wrap:break-word;}The Post rounds up major political events that made 2025 a significant year for the city

Panama port sale

The Post rounds up major political events that made 2025 a significant year for the city