The primary race for the presidency is between Democratic Progressive Party candidate and current Vice President Lai Chinte and Kuomintang nominee Hou Yi.
Voting has begun in Taiwan’s presidential and parliamentary elections. A change of political course may take place on the island, Ukrinform reported on Saturday, January 13.
The main rivals in the race are the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP), which has come to power in recent years, advocating island independence, and the opposition conservative Kuomintang Party, which has proposed the possibility of economic cooperation with China.
After the DPP’s election victory in 2016, when the new authorities in Taiwan led by President Tsai Ing-wen made independence one of their priorities, Beijing cut all ties with Taipei and refused to political communication with island leaders.
China has also carried out a massive campaign to undermine the power of the DPP, on the one hand, using political, economic and military pressure, influence information campaigns and other means of coercion, and on the other hand, actively involving some groups and layers of Taiwanese society in socializing with PRC residents in various forums youth, business, etc.
Three political forces are taking part in the current election – the People’s Party is also fighting for participation in power.
There is a high possibility of a change of power and the return of the Kuomintang to the leadership of Taiwan, with which Beijing hopes to find understanding. Therefore, China attaches great importance to the current expression of will.
According to the local Central Election Commission, approximately 19.6 million people are eligible to vote in Taiwan. There are 17,795 polling stations on the island, where you can vote from 8:00 am to 4:00 pm local time, after which the counting of votes will begin.
Taiwan has a presidential-parliamentary form of government, so more attention is paid to choosing the president who will form the next government.
The tightest race for the position is between DPP candidate and current Vice President Lai Chinte and Kuomintang nominee Hou Yi.
According to recent opinion polls, Lai has the highest voter support, with Hou coming in second. However, the difference between them ten days before the day of declaration of will is only about 4%, with about 15% undecided in their choice.
In the parliamentary elections, the Kuomintang was in the lead, and the DPP was second with a small margin – about 3%. However, none of them will receive enough numbers to form a majority on their own, so difficult negotiations are expected with the third participant in the race, the People’s Party.
Let’s remember that in the event of an armed conflict between China and Taiwan, the damage to the global economy could reach $10 trillion or 10% of global GDP.
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Source: korrespondent
I am David Wyatt, a professional writer and journalist for Buna Times. I specialize in the world section of news coverage, where I bring to light stories and issues that affect us globally. As a graduate of Journalism, I have always had the passion to spread knowledge through writing.