The pro-democracy groups needed at least 100 positions on the 800-member election panel, which will decide who can run in the March vote for the city's leader, or chief executive. Only candidates backed by at least 100 members of the committee - which acts like an electoral college - can join the race.

Yeung Sum, a senior member of the pro-democracy movement, said his camp won 114 seats in Sunday's vote to fill openings on the election committee. The pro-democracy supporters also have an additional 18 lawmakers - who automatically have positions on the panel - inclined to vote for their candidate.

The pro-democracy camp's candidate in the race, lawmaker Alan Leong, said he now had a good shot at being on the ballot.

"I'm confident I will probably get 100 votes in March," Leong said.

It would be the first time since Hong Kong's 1997 handover to China that a figure from the pro-democracy camp ran against the candidate backed by Beijing. In the past two elections, the pro-Beijing candidate ran unopposed.

Ma Ngok, a political scientist Chinese University in Hong Kong, said that the democrats larger presence on the election committee helps protect them against any possible meddling by Beijing.

"Even if the central government wants to put pressure on the election committee members, it will be a very difficult task to take away 30 votes," Ma said.

Leong said he was encouraged by Sunday's record voter turnout of 27 percent, compared to 19.5 percent when the last such vote was held in 2000.

The turnout "sends a clear and loud message to those in power that people want a contested chief executive election. We want to see Hong Kong democratized and the message can't be interpreted in any other way."

If Leong is allowed to run, he'll be in for a tough battle. Hong Kong still lacks full democracy, so the winner will be selected by the 800-member election committee, which is traditionally loyal to Beijing.

China's leadership has refused to grant Hong Kong full democracy in the near future. The city is governed under a "one country, two systems" formula, designed to give the territory a wide degree of autonomy.

Some of the pro-democracy parties have refused to be involved in the chief executive vote, which they call a "small circle election." They say they will only partake in a race that involves candidates who are selected directly by the voters.