Hong Kong's Legislative Council (Legco, the territory's parliament) will gain more directly elected seats in 2012, following approval of an amendment in June 2010 by the same body. This approval came after the central Chinese government had accepted the amendment. The agreement on political reform should help to reduce the risk of street protests over the next couple of years and take some of the pressure off the chief executive, Donald Tsang, whose popularity has suffered in recent months. Supporters of democracy will nevertheless continue to push for both the chief executive and the whole of the legislature to be chosen by popular vote. There may be a renewed intensification of the debate on electoral reform in 2012 as both the Chinese government and Hong Kong's pro-democracy camp prepare for elections for the chief executive and Legco in that year. Healthy economic growth in the forecast period will aid political stability, but the government's poll ratings remain low.

Hong Kong's largest pro-democracy party, the Democratic Party (DP), supported the political reforms in Legco, reflecting a more nuanced approach to its calls for political reform, rather than persisting with its vocal campaign for full democracy. The adoption by the DP of a more pragmatic stance to political reform might thus win the party extra votes. But this strategic departure could yet threaten the cohesion of the pro-democracy movement; critics have interpreted the electoral reforms as legitimising the undemocratic aspects of the territory's political system, and divisions within the pro-democracy camp could become wider.

Key political battlegrounds include reform of healthcare financing, environmental policy and efforts to tackle poverty-all areas in which the democratic camp will seek to hold Hong Kong's administration to account. However, opinion polls have indicated that the public favours a practical approach, notably on issues that affect relations with the mainland government.