Low turnout snubbed the first legislative election in Hong Kong under new rules written by Beijing, which was to ensure its preferred candidates win. Only 30 percent of registered voters or about 1,350,680 people cast their ballots on Dec. 19—almost half that of the previous legislative poll in 2016—according to Hong Kong’s top election official. Over 50 percent voted in the 2012 poll, driven by anti-Beijing sentiment. The Sunday turnout is also the lowest since the British handed the city over to China in 1997. The previous record low for a legislative election was 43.6 percent in 2000. Meanwhile, 2 percent of the votes in the Dec. 19 election were invalid, including blank votes—a record high, according to local media calculations. Some said that the lack of choice in candidates dampened public enthusiasm for voting, after Beijing made electoral changes in March to secure more political power for its loyalists in Hong …