Hong Kong wraps up unofficial democracy poll in defiance of Beijing

By Emily Chung HONG KONG (Reuters) - More than 765,000 votes had been cast by early afternoon on Sunday, the final day of an unofficial referendum on democratic reforms in Hong Kong, part of a civil campaign that has been branded illegal by local and mainland Chinese authorities. Hong Kong, a free-wheeling, capitalist hub of more than seven million people, returned to Chinese rule in 1997 with wide-ranging autonomy under a "one country, two systems" formula, along with an undated promise of universal suffrage. While Beijing says Hong Kong can go ahead with a vote in 2017 for the city's top leader, Hong Kong's mini-constitution, the Basic Law, specifies that only a nominating committee can pick leadership candidates. Democracy activists want the nomination process to be open to everyone, in line with international standards, and have threatened to lock down the Central area of Hong Kong, home to some of Asia's biggest companies and banks, if the city fails to adopt a strong democratic method for electing its next leader.

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