On August 13, 2019, in the midst of the Anti-extradition Law Amendment Bill movement, the airport rally was suppressed by the police. Richard stood between the protesters and the policemen to mediate. That scene was photographed by many members of the press.
Since then, many Hong Kong people have named him “Airport Uncle.”
Chan participated in the district council election for the first time on Nov. 24, 2019. He defeated the pro-communist candidate, Chan Cho Leung, a member of the Business & Professionals Alliances for Hong Kong, with 3,605 votes in the Lam Tsuen Valley constituency, and was successfully elected as a district councilor together with most of the pan-democratic candidates….