Former Macau top judge Sam Hou-fai on Tuesday submitted his nominations to run for chief executive, making him likely the sole candidate for the post.

Sam put forward 383 nominations from the 400-strong election committee.

Committee members can only nominate one person, which means any other hopefuls won't be able to secure the minimum 66 nominations required to enter the election.

"So many election committee members support me, up until now, I am very satisfied. I didn't have expectations as to how many [would nominate me], I didn't think about it," Sam told reporters.

"The key is to conduct the electioneering work according to my own election process."

He said in the coming weeks he will listen to more views and engage the public in a bid to persuade the remaining 17 committee members who didn't nominate him to vote for him in the election on October 13.

To become a candidate, Sam still needs to be officially vetted for eligibility.

The current chief executive, Ho Iat-seng, announced last month that he would not seek another term in office, citing health reasons.

Both of his predecessors, Edmund Ho and Fernando Chui, served the maximum two five-year terms allowed under the law.