Hong Kong pro-democracy candidates have swept the city's district council elections, the city's first poll to be held after almost six months of anti-Government protests.

Key points: A record 71 per cent of registered people voted in the election

A record 71 per cent of registered people voted in the election Pro-democracy supporters said the Government must listen to voters

Pro-democracy supporters said the Government must listen to voters A stand-off between protesters and police at a university continues

Results published by broadcaster HK01 show that all 452 seats have been counted, with pro-democracy candidates taking 385 seats, or about 85 per cent of the spots up for grabs.

Pro-establishment candidates, who champion Beijing's rule, were left with 59 seats.

Four years ago at the previous vote, democrats only secured about 100 seats.

Hong Kong's district councils control some spending and decide issues such as recycling and public health.

Pro-democracy candidates now are in the running to gain six seats on Hong Kong's semi-representative Legislative Council and 117 seats on the 1,200-member panel that selects the city's chief executive.

The city's current Beijing-backed chief executive, Carrie Lam, said her Government would "listen humbly" to the public after voters dealt a humiliating election setback to the political establishment she heads.

"The Government will certainly listen humbly to citizens' opinions and reflect on them seriously," she said in a statement issued by the Government.

Electoral affairs chief Barnabus Fung said at least 2.94 million people voted, a record turnout of more than 71 per cent that appeared to have been spurred by the turmoil.

About 1.47 million people voted in the last district elections four years ago.

'It's a resounding victory'

Space to play or pause, M to mute, left and right arrows to seek, up and down arrows for volume. Watch Duration: 1 minute 5 seconds 1 m 5 s Pro-democracy district council winner Kelvin Lam says the initial results sent a strong sign to the government

This year's poll saw a record 1,104 candidates vying for 452 seats.

When the results began trickling in after midnight (local time), including upset wins for democrats against heavyweight pro-Beijing opponents, some voting centres erupted in loud cheers and chants of "Liberate Hong Kong. Revolution now", which has been a slogan for many anti-Government protesters.

Some winning candidates said the result was akin to a vote of support for the demonstrators, and could raise the heat on Ms Lam, amid the city's worst political crisis in decades.

"This is the power of democracy. This is a democratic tsunami," Tommy Cheung, a former student protest leader who won a seat in the Yuen Long district close to China's border, said.

Pro-democracy supporters have been protesting for greater freedoms from China for almost six months. ( AP: Vincent Yu )

Other successful pro-democracy candidates included Lester Shum, a former student leader of the city's 2014 Umbrella Movement, and Kelvin Lam, who stood in after activist Joshua Wong was barred from running.

The elections are seen as a test of support for the embattled Chief Executive, who has faced intense pressure during months of unrest in the Chinese-ruled city.

Ma Ngok, a political scientist at The Chinese University of Hong Kong, said the results were a "resounding victory" and that no-one could have predicted the enormous turnout of voters.

"The Government and the pro-Beijing camp have always claimed they have public support. But now … this is a big slap in the face because the public has showed their real position in record numbers," he said.

"Most people think the extra 1 million voters came out to send a political message to the Government, that they still support the protesters and they're dissatisfied with the Government."

'Ignoring political rights is a losing strategy'

Pro-democracy candidates have claimed a majority, although counting of the ballots continues. ( AP: Vincent Yu )

Demonstrators are angry at what they see as Chinese meddling in the freedoms promised to the former British colony when it returned to Chinese rule in 1997 under a "one country, two systems" principle.

Under the terms of the Sino-British joint declaration of 1984, Hong Kong was to be granted British capitalism, common law, and personal freedoms for a period of 50 years from the handover.

They have also complained of police brutality, with one video showing a police officer shooting protesters and another driving their motorcycle into a crowd of demonstrators.

The protests started over a now-withdrawn extradition bill that would have allowed people to be sent to mainland China for trial but rapidly evolved to push for full democracy, posing the biggest popular challenge to Chinese President Xi Jinping since he came to power in 2012.

The protests have at times forced the closure of government, businesses and schools as police used tear gas, rubber bullets and water cannon in response to petrol bombs and rocks.

Space to play or pause, M to mute, left and right arrows to seek, up and down arrows for volume. Watch Duration: 52 seconds 52 s Hong Kong Polytechnic University has become the site of violent clashes between protesters and police.

The run-up to the election was marked by attacks on candidates, with one pro-Beijing candidate stabbed and wounded and another having part of his ear bitten off.

Sunday was also the seventh day of a standoff at Hong Kong Polytechnic University, whose campus has been surrounded by police as some protesters hid out on the grounds.

However, China has dismissed the protesters' claims and said it is committed to 'one country, two systems' for the autonomy of Hong Kong. Police claim they have shown restraint in the face of increasingly violent protests

Human Rights Watch's China director Sophie Richardson told the ABC that Hong Kong's election result should prompt Beijing to "engage people on their legitimate grievances".

"Ignoring assertions of political rights—either through the ballot box or peaceful street protests—is a losing strategy," she said.

Share of votes cast points to more complex picture

Carrie Lam has called for continued calm after voting occurred without incident. ( Reuters: Athit Perawongmetha )

Deng Fei, director of the Chinese Association of Hong Kong and Macau Studies, told the ABC the election did not show that "public opinion as a whole is against Beijing".

"But if you look at the votes, there is no such big difference. About 58 per cent of voters voted for the pan-democratic camp and 39 per cent for the pro-establishment camp," he said.

He said the overwhelming result in favour of democratic candidates was a quirk of Hong Kong's electoral system.

Nonetheless, Hong Kong's leader, who is backed by Beijing, pledged that her Government would listen more intensively to the views of district councils.

"I hope this kind of stability and calm is not only for today's election, but to show that everyone does not want Hong Kong to fall into a chaotic situation again," Ms Lam said.

A record number of registered voters took part in Hong Kong's district council elections. ( AP: Ng Han Guan )

ABC/wires