Taiwan\u2019s ruling Democratic Progressive Party pulled off a historic third consecutive presidential victory on Saturday as voters shrugged off warnings by China that their re-election would increase the risk of conflict. <\/p>\n
Lai Ching-te, Taiwan\u2019s current vice president, declared victory on Saturday evening while his two opposition rivals both conceded defeat. <\/p>\n
\u201cThis is a night that belongs to Taiwan. We managed to keep Taiwan on the map of the world,\u201d Lai told thousands of jubilant supporters at a rally after his win. <\/p>\n
\u201cThe election has shown the world the commitment of the Taiwanese people to democracy, which I hope China can understand,\u201d he added. <\/p>\n
China responded soon after the vote by saying \u201cTaiwan\u00a0is part of\u00a0China.\u201d <\/p>\n
Lai\u2019s running mate Hsiao Bi-khim, who recently served as Taiwan\u2019s top envoy to the United States, was elected Vice President. <\/p>\n
The counting of votes has concluded, with Lai \u2013 the candidate of Taiwan\u2019s ruling Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) \u2013 receiving just over 40% of the total votes, according to Taiwan\u2019s Central Election Commission (CEC). <\/p>\n
Taiwan\u2019s opposition Kuomintang (KMT) party candidate Hou Yu-ih garnered 33.49% of the votes, with Taiwan People\u2019s Party (TPP) candidate Ko Wen-je received 26.45%. More than 14 million people took part, meaning that voter turnout came in at just over 71%. <\/p>\n
The boisterous election campaign, an illustration of Taiwan\u2019s vibrant democratic credentials, was fought over a mixture of livelihood issues as well as the thorny question of how to deal with its giant one-party state neighbor, China, which under leader Xi Jinping has grown more powerful and bellicose. <\/p>\n
The result shows voters backing the DPP\u2019s view that Taiwan is a de facto sovereign nation that should bolster defenses against China\u2019s threats and deepen relations with fellow democratic countries, even if that means economic punishment or military intimidation by Beijing. <\/p>\n
It is also a further snub to eight years of increasingly strongarm tactics towards Taiwan under Xi who has vowed that the island\u2019s eventual \u201creunification\u201d with the mainland is \u201ca historical inevitability\u201d. <\/p>\n
Following Taiwan\u2019s election result, a spokesperson for China\u2019s Ministry of Foreign Affairs said no matter \u201cwhatever changes take place in\u00a0Taiwan, the basic fact that there is only one\u00a0China\u00a0in the world and\u00a0Taiwan\u00a0is part of\u00a0China\u00a0will not change.\u201d <\/p>\n
The spokesperson continued: \u201cThe one-China\u00a0principle is the solid anchor for peace and stability in the\u00a0Taiwan\u00a0Strait. We believe that the international community will continue\u00a0to\u00a0adhere\u00a0to\u00a0the one-China\u00a0principle and understand and support the Chinese people\u2019s just cause of opposing \u2018Taiwan independence\u2019 separatist activities and striving\u00a0to\u00a0achieve national reunification.\u201d <\/p>\n
A spokesperson for\u00a0China\u2019s\u00a0Taiwan\u00a0Affairs\u00a0Office earlier\u00a0insisted the election result \u201cdoes not represent the mainstream view on the island.\u201d <\/p>\n
Other world powers have congratulated Lai, with US Secretary of State Antony Blinken saying the vote demonstrated \u201cthe strength of [Taiwan\u2019s] robust democratic system and electoral process.\u201d <\/p>\n
Like outgoing president Tsai Ing-wen, who cannot stand again because of term limits, Lai is openly loathed by China\u2019s Communist Party leaders and his victory is unlikely to lead to any improvement in ties between Beijing and Taipei. <\/p>\n
China cut off most communications with Taipei after Tsai took office and ramped up diplomatic, economic and military pressure on the self-ruled island, turning the Taiwan Strait into one of the world\u2019s major geopolitical flash points. <\/p>\n
China\u2019s ruling Communist Party views Taiwan as part of its territory, despite having never controlled it. While successive Chinese Communist leaders have vowed to eventually achieve \u201creunification,\u201d Xi has repeatedly said the Taiwan issue \u201cshould not be passed down generation after generation,\u201d linking the mission to his mid-century goal of \u201cnational rejuvenation.\u201d <\/p>\n
The DPP emphasizes that Taiwan is not subordinate to the Chinese Communist Party, and that its future Taiwan must only be decided by its 23.5 million people. <\/p>\n
In the run up to Saturday\u2019s vote, Beijing warned Taiwan\u2019s voters to \u201cmake the right choice\u201d and \u201crecognize the extreme danger of Lai Ching-te\u2019s triggering of cross-strait confrontation and conflict.\u201d <\/p>\n
His running mate Hsiao has been sanctioned twice by China for being a \u201cstubborn secessionist.\u201d <\/p>\n
Speaking to the media ahead of his victory speech on Saturday night, Lai called his win a \u201cvictory for the community of democracies.\u201d <\/p>\n
\u201cWe are telling the international community that between democracy and authoritarianism, we still stand on the side of democracy,\u201d he said. <\/p>\n
\u201cI will act in accordance with our democratic and free constitutional order in a manner that is balanced and maintains the cross-strait status quo,\u201d he added. \u201cAt the same time, we are also determined to safeguard Taiwan from continuing threats and intimidation from China\u201d. <\/p>\n
\u201cIn the future, we hope that China will recognize the new situation, and understand that only peace benefits both sides of the strait,\u201d he added. <\/p>\n
Lai\u2019s victory comes as the US\u00a0is trying to stabilize fraught relations with China and prevent competition from veering into conflict. During Tsai\u2019s administration, Taiwan bolstered ties with the United States, its biggest international backer, which increased support and arms sales to the island. <\/p>\n
US officials have said that Washington will uphold its longstanding policy toward Taiwan no matter who takes on the top job. The Biden administration will dispatch an unofficial delegation \u2013 including former senior officials \u2013 to Taipei following the election in keeping with past practice, according to senior officials. <\/p>\n
The delegation visit \u201cwill be a signal, a very symbolic way of supporting Taiwan,\u201d said T.Y. Wang, a\u00a0professor\u00a0at Illinois State University. <\/p>\n
Saturday\u2019s result is another major blow for Taiwan\u2019s Kuomintang, which back warmer relations with Beijing and have not held the presidency since 2016. <\/p>\n
Beijing made little secret of its desire to see the KMT return to power. During campaigning the KMT accused Lai and the DPP of needlessly stoking tensions with China. <\/p>\n
Lev Nachman,\u00a0a political science professor at Taiwan\u2019s National Chengchi University, said that while Lai has to make some economic adjustments\u00a0given deep public grievances over low wages and unaffordable housing, on issues like foreign policy and cross-strait relations he is expected to largely follow Tsai\u2019s approach. <\/p>\n
\u201cSo much of (Lai\u2019s) campaign has been trying to reassure not just a domestic audience, but international audience that he is Tsai Ing-wen 2.0,\u201d he said. <\/p>\n
That will not be welcome in Beijing. <\/p>\n
Days before the election, China\u2019s Taiwan Affairs Office said by following Tsai\u2019s path, Lai is pursuing a path of provocation and confrontation and will bring Taiwan \u201ccloser and closer to war and recession.\u201d <\/p>\n
Analysts say China could escalate economic and military pressure on Taiwan to show its displeasure in the coming days and weeks, or save a more forceful response for May, when Lai takes office. <\/p>\n
\u201cThere\u2019s multiple times that China could cause a fuss over a DPP victory, either now or later this year,\u201d Nachman said. <\/p>\n
And Beijing has a wide range of coercive measures in its toolbox too. <\/p>\n
In the lead-up to the vote, China ended preferential tariffs for some Taiwanese imports under a free trade agreement. It could broaden the scope of goods targeted, or even suspend the agreement altogether. <\/p>\n
China can also further ramp up its military pressure on Taiwan, sending more fighter jets and warships close to the island\u2019s skies and waters, a tactic it has deployed with increased frequency in recent years. <\/p>\n
But Taiwan\u2019s security officials said ahead of the vote that they didn\u2019t expect large-scale military actions from China right after the election, citing unsuitable winter weather conditions, troubles in the Chinese economy, and efforts by Beijing and Washington to stabilize ties following a bilateral summit in November. <\/p>\n
And while an escalation of military tension could increase the risks of accidents and miscalculations, it doesn\u2019t necessarily portend an imminent conflict in the Taiwan Strait, analysts noted. <\/p>\n
\u201cJust because the DPP is in power doesn\u2019t mean China\u2019s going to war,\u201d said Nachman. <\/p>\n
\u201cThe last eight years have obviously been uncomfortable with the DPP in power, but it hasn\u2019t led to war, they\u2019ve been able to find an uncomfortable middle ground.\u00a0And the hope is that even with a Lai presidency that we can continue to have this sort of uncomfortable silence without having to go to war.\u201d <\/p>\n\n
Taiwan\u2019s ruling Democratic Progressive Party pulled off a historic third consecutive presidential victory on Saturday as voters shrugged off warnings by China that their re-election would increase the risk of conflict. Lai Ching-te, Taiwan\u2019s current vice president, declared victory on Saturday evening while his two opposition rivals both conceded defeat. \u201cThis is a night that <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":0,"featured_media":14007,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[23],"tags":[],"class_list":{"0":"post-14006","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-world"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/shareperformanceinsight.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/14006","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/shareperformanceinsight.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/shareperformanceinsight.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/shareperformanceinsight.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=14006"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/shareperformanceinsight.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/14006\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/shareperformanceinsight.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/14007"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/shareperformanceinsight.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=14006"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/shareperformanceinsight.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=14006"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/shareperformanceinsight.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=14006"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}