TAIPEI (Taiwan News) — In a pivotal Taiwan election where the stakes were high and the future direction of the country was in question, the Democratic Progressive Party’s (DPP) Lai Ching-te (賴清德) and running mate Hsiao Bi-khim (蕭美琴) emerged victorious on Saturday (Jan. 13), but they were not the only winners.
After the dust settled, Lai secured over 5.5 million votes, or around 40.06% of the vote, compared to Hou Yu-ih (侯友宜) of the Kuomintang (KMT) with 4.6 million or 33.49%, and Ko Wen-je (柯文哲) of the Taiwan People’s Party (TPP) with 3.6 million or 26.45%.
However, compared to 2020, when the DPP captured 8.17 million votes, or 57.13% of the vote, and the KMT garnered 38.16%, Saturday’s results indicate dissatisfaction with both the traditional parties. More importantly for the DPP, it appears they will lose the majority in the legislature, meaning that Lai will have one hand tied behind his back when he takes over the presidency.
And while the KMT lost the presidential race, it picked up a significant number of legislative seats. Meanwhile, Ko’s ability to capture as many votes as he did shows that his message of anti-corruption resonated strongly with voters.
In the end, all three parties came away with a partial victory. The DPP will now have to reach across the aisle if it hopes to get anything done. Lai said in his victory speech that he had received congratulatory calls from both Hou and Ko, saying he hoped all parties could work together in the legislature for the good of the nation.
But by far the biggest loser in today’s election was China. Had Hou and the KMT won the presidency, Taiwan would have taken a hard pivot away from the West toward Beijing. And while the struggle is far from over, today we can say that the people have spoken and Taiwanese democracy won.
