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Ben Westcott

Hong Kong’s US expatriates are closing their poll to choose a Democratic candidate for the 45th president of the United States.
US voters in Hong Kong began voting on Tuesday last week at Central’s Tipping Point bar.
The voting counts towards the choice being made in the US for a Democratic Party candidate, and polls have been occuring in cities like Auckland and further afield.
Polls will close on March 8th worldwide for Americans living abroad and votes will be counted for the international primary.
While some locals voted quickly and left last Tuesday, alcohol and politics kept the pub full for several hours as the merits of candidates were discussed, including who could beat Republican frontrunner Donald Trump.
READ MORE: Hillary Clinton attacks Bernie Sanders’ Democratic bona fides as primary race tightens ahead of Nevada caucuses
“We are Hillary girls, we both voted for Hillary in the 2008 primary,” 32-year-old Dan Billings of Philadelphia said, indicating himself and his friend.
Billings has lived in Hong Kong for three years on-and-off but said he still followed US politics.
“[When Hillary lost] in 2008 she was so gracious – I just rewatched her speech,” he said. “Then she and Barrack became this political power couple and they did great work together.”
We are Hillary girls, we both voted for Hillary in the 2008 primary
Dan Billings
Since February 1 in the US, both the Republican and Democratic parties have been going state-to-state voting on who will be their presidential nominee in November.
Trump and Clinton are currently leading the contests in their respective parties.
The Republican Party doesn’t give its overseas members a specific primary vote, although they can lodge absentee ballots for their home states.
“I’ve seen some chatter from our members, but I haven’t seen any strong opinions [on a Republicans Overseas primary],” Republicans Overseas Hong Kong secretary Tariq Dennison said.
“The real reason we’re here is trying to raise interest, have events and help people vote.”
A Republicans Overseas straw poll conducted on January 30 found overwhelming support for establishment candidate Marco Rubio and former candidate Rand Paul.
You are constantly asked and confronted with the failings of your previous government or your current government and you need to explain how these things work
Dan Billings
In comparison, the Democrats have allocated 17 votes for their international members in the 2016 primary, more than in the 2008 election.
Billings said as a US citizen living overseas he had a different perspective on voting since he’d left the country.
“You are constantly asked and confronted with the failings of your previous government or your current government and you need to explain how these things work,” he said.
In the 2008 Democrats Abroad primary, when Clinton was competing against Barack Obama, she lost the vote 65 per cent to 32 per cent after about 22,000 party members voted worldwide.
But in the Tipping Point, the vote seems pretty evenly split, as Clinton fanatics rubbed shoulders with Sanders supporters.
“I don’t actually thinking [Bernie] can win at all, I just like basically everything he stands for, all his policies,” said a 41-year-old New Yorker, who has lived in Hong Kong for almost two decades.
She came to vote alongside her 42-year-old Connecticut friend, who also lives in Hong Kong and has just finished voting for Clinton.
“I think she can bring both parties together in a way that Bernie cannot, and she can accomplish a lot, more than Obama, certainly more than Bernie Sanders,” she said.
One thing both women agreed on was their opinion of the Republican presidential candidates.
“If the Republicans only have those three or four candidates it’s a very important election because they are all terrible,” the 41-year-old Sanders voter said.
Democrats Abroad Asia Pacific regional vice-chair Alex Montgomery said his organisation had reached a turning point, as candidates started to take the international vote very seriously.
“We had a global town hall which we held online where we asked all the candidates to come and speak to Americans Abroad,” he said.
“We ended up having over 2000 participants from 65 countries – Bernie spoke directly to Americans Abroad and [former Secretary of State] Madeleine Albright spoke on behalf of the Clinton campaign.”
But as the alcohol flowed on Thursday, not all voters felt they were particularly important. Some just felt it was the right thing to do.
“I know I’m tiny and minuscule but I think it’s more important than ever to vote,” a Democratic primary voter said.


Clinton or Sanders? Hong Kong Democrats cast their ballot in worldwide primary

Democratic candidates Hillary Clinton, left, and Bernie Sanders face off in Flint Michigan in the final run-off to the presidential primaries. Photo: AP

Democratic U.S. presidential candidates Hillary Clinton and Bernie Sanders speak simultaneously as they debate during the Democratic U.S. presidential candidates' debate in Flint, Michigan, March 6, 2016. REUTERS/Jim Young (TPX IMAGES OF THE DAY)

Picture for Features, Interiors. Tipping Point bar, by Alberto Puchetti or Arboit, for Charmaine. Credit: courtesy of Alberto Puchetti. Country: HK. Section: inteiriors.

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