© Reuters. Individuals look ahead to the opening of the polling station to forged their vote, in Taipei, Taiwan January 13, 2024. REUTERS/Carlos Garcia Rawlins
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By Yimou Lee and James Pomfret
TAIPEI (Reuters) -Taiwanese voters swept the ruling Democratic Progressive Get together’s (DPP) presidential candidate Lai Ching-te into energy on Saturday, strongly rejecting Chinese language strain to spurn him, as Lai pledged each to face as much as Beijing and search talks.
Lai’s celebration, which champions Taiwan’s separate identification and rejects China’s territorial claims, was looking for a 3rd successive 4 yr time period, unprecedented beneath Taiwan’s present electoral system.
“We have written a brand new web page for Taiwan’s historical past of democracy,” Lai, lengthy the frontrunner within the polls, informed reporters after each his opponents conceded defeat.
Within the run-up to the election, China denounced Lai as a harmful separatist, and referred to as on the individuals of Taiwan to make the proper selection whereas noting the “excessive hurt of the DPP’s ‘Taiwan independence’ line”. They’ve additionally repeatedly rebuffed Lai’s requires talks.
Lai mentioned he would preserve the established order in cross-strait relations, however that he was “decided to safeguard Taiwan from threats and intimidation from China”.
On the identical time, he emphasised the necessity for cooperation and dialogue with Beijing on an equal foundation to “change confrontation”, although he did not give specifics.
Beijing has but to touch upon Lai’s victory.
The election was not solely about China, with electors anxious about points as various because the excessive value of housing, low wage progress and unstable energy provides.
Lai gained 40% of the vote in Taiwan’s first-past-the-post system, in contrast to present President Tsai Ing-wen who was re-elected by a landslide 4 years in the past with greater than 50% of the vote.
The DPP additionally misplaced its management of parliament, Lai mentioned, which may hamper his skill to cross laws and spending payments.
Nonetheless, he supplied an olive department to his opponents in saying he would come with expertise from their events.
Lai mentioned he would cooperate along with his electoral rivals, Hou Yu-ih of Taiwan’s largest opposition celebration the Kuomintang (KMT) and former Taipei Mayor Ko Wen-je of the Taiwan Individuals’s Get together, in resolving the issues Taiwan faces.
In the course of the polls, tons of of hundreds of Taiwanese youths flocked to rallies held by Ko, who has emerged as a brand new pressure in Taiwan’s political panorama with roughly 1 / 4 of the vote regardless of coming final.
The total outcomes of the parliamentary polls have been anticipated in a while Saturday night, with round 70% of the island’s 19 million or so eligible voters having forged ballots.
Tsai was constitutionally barred from standing once more after two phrases in workplace.