ABSTRACT
Political institutions of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region in many ways were designed to protect business interests. The term “real estate hegemony,” which emerged circa 2010, reflected public resentment against the politically powerful business elite. Yet, this term quickly went out of fashion after the Donald Tsang administration. This chapter critically examines the “real estate hegemony” thesis, which fails to explain low-income citizens’ staunch support for the pro-business political system. I propose a more nuanced perspective to understand the political economy of post-1997 Hong Kong.
