Taiwan votes continuity and elects the candidate whom China considers “a danger”

Taiwan has chosen to continue down the same path. The 19 million citizens called to the polls have chosen to make the ruling party candidate and current vice president, Lai Ching-te, president. The leader of the Democratic Progressive Party (PPD) has led the race with 40% of the votes, according to official results with almost all of the electoral centers counted. The nationalist Kuomintang (KMT) formation, inclined to a rapprochement with Beijing, has come in second place, with 33%, a greater distance than expected in the polls. It is the first time that a party has won a third consecutive mandate since the first democratic elections in 1996.

The result sends a clear message to the other side of the Taiwan Strait, and to the world: the self-governed island that China claims as an inalienable part of its territory and which the United States supports militarily, will continue on the path that Tsai Ing began eight years ago -wen, the current president. Tsai will leave power after exceeding the legal limit of two terms that have been marked by the absence of communication with the People's Republic, the growing tensions in the Strait and the rapprochement with Washington. She will be succeeded by Lai, 64 years old and a doctor by training, the option she least likes in Beijing. The event, much more than an election on this island where superpowers collide, has marked the start of a crucial year of global elections, where almost half of the population is called to the polls – from India to the United States, passing through the European Union-.

The next president, who will take office on May 20, has defined himself during the campaign as a guarantor of “stability” and the maintenance of the current status quo in relations with the Asian giant. He has spoken of deepening the deterrence strategy, so that an armed conflict is unthinkable, and at the same time he has committed to seeking dialogue with Beijing under conditions of “parity and dignity”, which will not be easy. “As president, I have an important responsibility to maintain peace and stability in the Taiwan Strait,” he stressed in an appearance before his party headquarters with the scrutiny almost over. “At the same time, we are determined to protect Taiwan from China's continued threats and intimidation,” he added. Lai has also sent a message to the international community: “Between democracy and authoritarianism we will be on the side of democracy.” His continuity with Lai's policies, which has deepened relations with Washington, suggests that he will continue to enjoy good treatment with his main international ally.

China, which considers the island a rebellious province that it intends to reunify peacefully, but without renouncing the use of force if necessary, has instead suggested that the PDP candidate hides a secessionist tendency, which “harms ” to the population of Taiwan and “endangers” peace in the Strait. The People's Republic's preferred option was the nationalist Kuomintang, a party traditionally prone to a friendlier relationship with the Government in Beijing. The big question is what strategy the Asian giant will follow from this moment on.

The day before the elections, a spokesperson for the People's Liberation Army (PLA, the Chinese army) criticized Taiwan's latest acquisition of American weapons, and assured that such purchases only serve to bring the island closer to a “ferocious war.” ”. “The PLA is on high alert at all times and will take all necessary measures to resolutely crush any form of Taiwan independence secessionist designs.”

Messages of this style are nothing new. They have been part of the campaign. And on the island you live with them. These days the Government has denounced China's interference through different means, from disinformation to military threats. But the day passed completely normally in a young democracy, which takes the process very seriously. The polling stations opened at eight in the morning and closed at four in the afternoon, local time. Then the scrutiny began with Taiwanese characteristics, which is surprisingly transparent and efficient. It is publicly accessible and people come to the polling stations to see it. The members of the polling stations sing the votes out loud, raising each ballot with two hands so that it is visible. They write down the results with sticks, the old way. And finally they show the sheet with the results.

“I wanted to bring my daughter to see it,” says Shao Kai-yang, a 45-year-old architect, who stopped by the Dongmen First School, a stone's throw from the presidential palace, in the center of Taipei. He wanted to show her that in different places there are different opinions and different results come out. But you have to respect it. He, who votes in another neighborhood, has opted for the PPD winner; In this college, however, victory goes to the nationalist Kuomintang, which will remain in the opposition for a third term for the first time since 1996, when the first democratic elections were held on the island. Wang ji-shun, an 81-year-old resident who has been a member of the KMT “for 60 years,” still had hopes of a victory after 5 p.m. He hoped for a change of government: “In terms of cross-Strait relations, the KMT is safer.”

Ko Wen-je, the candidate of the third party in the presidential race, the young People's Party of Taiwan, founded in 2019 and with a special pull among young people, has obtained 26.4% of citizen support. But the group can become a key pivot in the Legislative Yuan (Parliament). In the elections to occupy the 113 parliamentary seats, held simultaneously, no party has obtained an absolute majority. The KMT has led this race with 52 deputies, followed by the PPD, which loses the absolute majority it had and falls to 51. The PPT will have eight. Lai Tsing-te has recognized in this defeat the message of the citizens: “They want an effective Government and at the same time strong checks and balances.”

Lai, who made the leap to national politics as prime minister in 2017, forged his career in the city of Tainan, where he was mayor. As a councilor, he visited China for the first and only time in 2014. In 2017 he defined himself as a “pragmatic worker for independence,” something that has irritated Beijing. In recent times he has tried to tone down the tone with a more calm image, in line with that of the outgoing president, Tsai Ing-wen.

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