Looking at this year’s presidential and legislative nomination process, the national development planning of the candidates and their pan-blue, green and white camps can be seen.
Within the Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT), there has been a dispute over its nomination mechanism, as Hon Hai Group founder Terry Gou (郭台銘) again sought the party’s presidential nomination. With a basic consensus that the party must select the most suitable candidate, KMT Chairman Eric Chu (朱立倫) nominated New Taipei City Mayor Hou You-yi (侯友宜), a decision based on opinion polls.
Although the Taiwan People’s Party (TPP), the main party in the pan-white camp, was expected to ally with the KMT, the rise of pan-blue camp support was seen as unfavorable to the TPP, which has gradually been marginalized. A TVBS poll released last month said that support for the KMT, the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) and the TPP was 23, 22 and 12 percent respectively.
The DPP, even with great resources, has its burdens. Since Vice President and DPP Chairman William Lai (賴清德) launched his presidential campaign without challenge, he has used traditional media, social media and YouTube to interact with young people on issues concerning them, such as their livelihoods, education, the economy and transportation, while also proposing possible solutions. This has obviously had a positive effect on Lai’s campaign.
A Taiwanese Public Opinion Foundation poll released this month showed the DPP leading with a 24.6 percent approval rating, while the TPP’s rating rose greatly to 22.2 percent, overtaking the KMT, which fell to 20.4 percent.
Another TVBS poll, also conducted this month, showed that support for TPP Chairman and presidential candidate Ko Wen-je (柯文哲) surged 10 percent to 33 percent, followed by Lai at 30 percent, while Hou dropped to third at 23 percent. A surprise surge such as that by the TPP and its candidate is rarely seen, and the phenomenon deserves attention.
The TPP’s strategy is to uphold the banner of a “coalition government” after standing firmly in second place, in an attempt to stimulate a “dump-save effect,” in which voters ditch their preferred candidate to strategically cast their ballot for another to prevent a disliked party from winning.
The TPP believes that since there is a “ceiling” to the DPP’s growth, if the opposition camp can integrate light-green voters as well as medium to dark-blue voters, it might be able to achieve its ultimate goal of gaining power. This strategy has become the focus of many political watchers.
To achieve this, the TPP has been adopting a “two-handed strategy,” attacking the KMT to split the pan-blue camp, while attracting votes from the pan-green camp. The strategy has already yielded short-term results.
However, smart voters are also likely to be watching the TPP’s internal conflicts and Ko’s leadership style. Many problems occurred during his terms as Taipei mayor, such as administrative flaws by political appointees and corruption scandals, his autocratic leadership style and even sexual harassment allegations coming to light amid Taiwan’s #MeToo movement. Such problems are still fresh in the electorate’s mind.
Through direct elections, Taiwanese can be aware of facts and values that they are used to, but easily ignore, and such values of an open and diverse democratic society are exactly what China should learn.
Pan Wei-yiu is the secretary-general of the Northern Taiwan Society.
Translated by Eddy Chang
Trying to force a partnership between Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (TSMC) and Intel Corp would be a wildly complex ordeal. Already, the reported request from the Trump administration for TSMC to take a controlling stake in Intel’s US factories is facing valid questions about feasibility from all sides. Washington would likely not support a foreign company operating Intel’s domestic factories, Reuters reported — just look at how that is going over in the steel sector. Meanwhile, many in Taiwan are concerned about the company being forced to transfer its bleeding-edge tech capabilities and give up its strategic advantage. This is especially
US President Donald Trump’s second administration has gotten off to a fast start with a blizzard of initiatives focused on domestic commitments made during his campaign. His tariff-based approach to re-ordering global trade in a manner more favorable to the United States appears to be in its infancy, but the significant scale and scope are undeniable. That said, while China looms largest on the list of national security challenges, to date we have heard little from the administration, bar the 10 percent tariffs directed at China, on specific priorities vis-a-vis China. The Congressional hearings for President Trump’s cabinet have, so far,
The US Department of State has removed the phrase “we do not support Taiwan independence” in its updated Taiwan-US relations fact sheet, which instead iterates that “we expect cross-strait differences to be resolved by peaceful means, free from coercion, in a manner acceptable to the people on both sides of the Strait.” This shows a tougher stance rejecting China’s false claims of sovereignty over Taiwan. Since switching formal diplomatic recognition from the Republic of China to the People’s Republic of China in 1979, the US government has continually indicated that it “does not support Taiwan independence.” The phrase was removed in 2022
US President Donald Trump, US Secretary of State Marco Rubio and US Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth have each given their thoughts on Russia’s war with Ukraine. There are a few proponents of US skepticism in Taiwan taking advantage of developments to write articles claiming that the US would arbitrarily abandon Ukraine. The reality is that when one understands Trump’s negotiating habits, one sees that he brings up all variables of a situation prior to discussion, using broad negotiations to take charge. As for his ultimate goals and the aces up his sleeve, he wants to keep things vague for
RSS