In a first, casino hub Macau elects chief executive born in mainland China

Former judge Sam Hou Fai has been elected chief executive-designate of Macau, China’s special administrative region, setting him up to be the leader of the casino-dominated area next to Hong Kong.

Sam received 394 votes out of 398 ballots cast in an election that lasted about one hour and 35 minutes on Sunday, according to a statement on the government’s website.

He is the territory’s first leader born in mainland China. Critics fear the move will see Beijing’s agenda take priority over business interests.

After being announced as the chief executive-elect, Sam walked onto the stage to applause from the committee members. “It is the highest honour of my life”, the 62-year-old said.

He pledged to uphold national sovereignty, accelerate the city’s economic diversification, and better integrate it into the national development plans.

The appointment of Sam to a five-year term as chief executive must be approved by China’s central government.

“This was an election with one candidate. Ordinary residents here can’t vote here”, Al Jazeera’s Laura Westbrook reported from Macau. Some of the people I’ve spoken to “were unaware that today was an election.”

In 1962, Sam was born in Guangdong, a province in southern China. He received his law degree from Peking University in Beijing’s prestigious law school.

He previously practiced law in mainland China while also studying Portuguese law, culture, and language at the Portuguese University of Coimbra.

The only Chinese city with legal casino gaming is Macau. Beijing has called for the city to diversify its gambling-reliant economy.

“He]Sam] is the first leader of Macau that doesn’t come from a business background, and he has had some pretty strong comments about the gambling industry here – where he says that he wants to diversify it away from gambling”, Al Jazeera’s Westbrook said.

Sam has promised to accelerate the current government’s plan to boost tourism and other sectors such as traditional Chinese medicine, finance, exhibitions and commerce.

According to analysts, the city will still need to rely on the gambling industry for government funding to support the city’s welfare and fulfill other Beijing-imposed objectives.