Taiwan Sends a Clear Message at the Polls

Taiwan went to the polls this weekend in local elections. President Tsai Ing-wen and her Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) made the election about a single issue, China. The DPP has long been a supporter of Taiwan’s independence from China and an antagonist to Beijing since Ms. Tsai took office in 2016. With slogans like, “the world is watching how Taiwan defends its democracy”, the Taiwanese weren’t buying any of it. They rebuked the DPP, handing them a stunning defeat and forcing the president to step down as party leader. The winner was the Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT), who has been a proponent of closer ties with China. The KMT won 13 of 21 cities/counties, and importantly, their candidate, Chiang Wan-an, won the battle for mayor of Taipei. Mr. Chiang is the great-grandson of the founder of Taiwan, Chiang Kai-shek, and now a likely presidential candidate. The results are good news for President Xi; Taiwan has presidential elections in 2024 and his hope would be for a KMT victory. As the election was solely for local officials, there will be no change in government policy in the medium term, but the message to the president was clear; there are issues Taiwanese care about other than China. One result may be a toning down of the negative China rhetoric from the Taiwan administration, which could cool down the temperature in the Taiwan Strait. With numerous global geopolitical hotspots, any easing of tensions in one is most welcome.