Hong Kong leader Carrie Lam said on Monday she will not seek a second term as chief executive.
The announcement came a day after the nomination period for the city’s chief executive election opened.
Lam said she was not seeking re-election for her family.
“My family is my priority… This is my only consideration,” said Lam, adding her family told her to spend more time at home.
She also said she informed China’s Central People’s Government about the decision early last year and got “their understanding and respect”.
The poll for Hong Kong’s next leader has been pushed back to May as the city faces its worst COVID-19 outbreak in more than two years.
In the remaining three months of her term — which ends on June 30 — Lam said she will continue to lead her team to stabilize the coronavirus situation, hold a successful chief executive election and ensure a smooth handover to the next administration.
Speculations have been rife about who will run for the election, with various media agencies reporting Chief Secretary John Lee is joining the race.
When asked whether her No. 2 is participating in the election, Lam did not reply directly, only saying she had not received any resignation letter from members of her cabinet.
Lam’s five-year term has been marred by controversy, such as proposing a bill that would allow extraditions to jurisdictions including mainland China in 2019.
The bill — which has now been shelved — sparked months of protests.
The next year, Beijing introduced a national security law in Hong Kong, which critics say curtails freedom of speech.
Lam has also come under fire for her handling of the COVID-19 crisis in Hong Kong, with more than 8,000 deaths recorded.
