Hong Kong’s opposition pro-democracy movement has made unprecedented gains in the Chinese territory’s district council elections, early results show.

According to the figures, pro-democracy candidates have won 278 seats so far, and pro-Beijing candidates 42.

Despite fears the vote could be disrupted or cancelled over the unrest, it went ahead peacefully.

The election was seen as a test of support for the government after months of unrest, protests and clashes.

The government and Beijing had been hoping the election would bring a show of support from the so-called “silent majority”, but that did not materialise. Instead some significant pro-Beijing candidates lost council seats.

One controversial pro-Beijing lawmaker, who lost his seat, Junius Ho, said “heaven and earth have been turned upside down”.

Hong Kong’s district councillors have little political power and mainly deal with local issues such as bus routes and rubbish collection, so the district elections don’t normally generate such interest.

But these polls were the first time people could express at the ballot box their opinion on embattled Chief Executive Carrie Lam’s handling of the crisis, which was sparked by a now withdrawn extradition law.

A record 4.1 million people had registered to vote – more than half the population.

And more than 2.9m people cast votes for the 452 seats available, a turnout of more than 71%, against 47% in 2015.

The weekend was the first in months without any clashes or violence between protesters and police.

“Facing the extremely challenging situation, I’m pleased to say… we have a relatively calm and peaceful environment for [the] election today,” Chief Executive Carrie Lam said after voting.