Salesman Chan Kin-man, 36, and office assistant Leung Yuet-sheung, 65, who are on ICAC bail, will appear in the Kwun Tong magistrates' court on Tuesday.

Chan and Leung allegedly shared a post by former lawmaker Ted Hui Chi-fung, who has fled overseas, on their social media pages between October 30 and November 9. The post called on people to render their ballot papers invalid.

Violations of the Election (Corrupt and Illegal Conduct) Ordinance could lead to a maximum penalty of three years in prison and a fine of HK$200,000 upon conviction.

The ICAC urged the public to abide by the law and said that it will take resolute action to combat conduct manipulating or undermining the election.

This is the first time the ICAC, responsible for enforcing electoral laws, has used the ordinance to prosecute people for inciting others to cast blank or invalid votes or not to vote in the Sunday polls.

The two people charged are among the 10 that have been arrested since early November for the same charge. The ICAC also issued arrest warrants for Hui and former district councillor Yau Man-chun in late November.

The charges came as Secretary for Justice Teresa Cheng Yeuk-wah called on the public to vote for a "bright future for the young generation."

In a blog post yesterday, Cheng said the polls are "extremely meaningful" for Hong Kong.

She added that the new election system was constructed for the sake of implementing the principle of "patriots administering Hong Kong" and safeguarding the constitutional order.

"I believe that whoever gets elected will serve Hong Kong sincerely and work for the wellbeing of the people, and this is the essence of democracy."

Meanwhile, Secretary for Constitutional and Mainland Affairs Erick Tsang Kwok-wai visited the three border polling stations designated for Hongkongers in the mainland.

Tsang thanked the Registration and Electoral Office for carrying out preparatory work for the unprecedented arrangement.

The election enforcement action came a day after the office of the Commissioner of the Chinese Foreign Ministry in Hong Kong held a briefing calling for confidence in China's democratic system, while it once again criticized "American hypocrisy."

Deputy commissioner Pan Yundong said democracy is a common value shared by all of humanity.

"It is important to see whether its people run their own country when determining if a country is democratic," he added.