Pro-China Party Falls As Taiwan Elects First Female President In "Historic" Landslide Election
"We failed. The Nationalist Party lost the elections. We didn't work hard enough,” Eric Chu said on Saturday before taking a long bow in front of a “thin” crowd of supporters.
Chu stepped in to become the Nationalist Party (KMT) candidate in Taiwan’s presidential race when his predecessor was deemed too divisive. The island held two elections on Saturday, one for the presidency and one for seats in the national legislature - The Democratic Progressive Party scored resounding victories in both ballots.
The DPP candidate and former law professor Tsai Ing-wen became the island’s first female president after claiming 56% of the vote in the biggest landslide since the island's first democratic election twenty years ago.
Chu only managed to garner 31%.
Tsai will enjoy a friendly body of lawmakers as the DPP won 68 seats in the 113-seat legislature versus 36 for the Nationalists. Previously, KMT held 64 seats and this will be DPP's first ever majority.
Taiwan has spent eight years under KMT rule and ahead of the ballot, it was readily apparent that voters were ready for a change, with Tsai maintaining a commanding lead in opinion polls:
That, in turn, led Taiwan observers to predict that the legislature would likely fall to DPP as well. “If history is any indication, the KMT may lose its majority in parliament as well, given that for the two occasions when KMT lost the presidential elections (2000 and 2004), it also failed to win the majority of seats against the DPP in parliament,” Goldman wrote, in the days before the election.
The vote raises the specter of conflict with China. "While Tsai has pledged to maintain ties with Beijing, the DPP’s charter supports independence," Bloomberg notes, before ominously reminding readers that "The Chinese Communist Party passed a law allowing an attack to prevent secession in 2005, when the last DPP president, Chen Shui-bian, sought a referendum on statehood."
Underscoring how frosty relations (still) are, sixteen-year-old pop star Chou Tzu-yu had her activities in China suspended by her management company after waving a Taiwanese flag on a South Korean TV program. She was compelled to apologize in a televised address in order to avoid, in AP's words, "offending nationalist sentiments on the mainland."
“I’m sorry, I should have come out earlier to apologize,” she says, in a statement that sounds like it might have been beaten out of someone who shorted Chinese stocks last summer. “I didn’t come out until now because I didn't know how to face the situation and the public."
“There is only one China,” she adds, staring blankly into the camera before promising to behave going forward. “I am proud I am Chinese. As a Chinese person, while participating in activities abroad, my improper behavior hurt my company and netizens on both sides of the Strait. I feel deeply sorry and guilty. I decided to reflect on myself seriously and suspend all my activities in China.”
Chou's predicament was denounced by new President Tsai, who told reporters that "this particular incident will serve as a constant reminder to me about the importance of our country's strength and unity." And by "country" she probably doesn't mean China.
"Although Ms. Tsai has vowed to maintain a broadly stable relationship with mainland China, she remains reticent on specific strategies and has remained ambiguous about the ‘1992 consensus’ which has supported the principle of “one China” although each side has been allowed to interpret it differently," Goldman writes. "Her position has been that this is an option for Taiwan, but not the only one."
Still, analysts say Tsai likely won't move to anger Xi - at least not immediately.
"As long as Tsai doesn't provoke the other side, it's OK," one former newspaper distribution agent who attended Tsai's rally told AP. "Tsai won’t provoke China for sure, but she won’t satisfy its demands," said George Tsai, a politics professor at Chinese Cultural University in Taipei adds.
For his part, Chu just can't seem to figure out where things went awry. "Why has public opinion changed so much? How did our party misread public opinion? Our policy ideas, the people in our camp, the way we communicate with society -- are there major problems there? Why did we fail to self-examine and lose power in the central government and lose our legislative majority?," he asked himself during a concession speech at Kuomintang headquarters.
The answer to all of Chu's questions is simple. "The landslide was propelled by anxiety over stagnant wages, high home prices and dissatisfaction with President Ma Ying-jeou’s polices of rapprochement with Taiwan’s one-time civil war foes on mainland China," Bloomberg writes, summing things up nicely before adding that "Tsai will bear the task of resuscitating an economy expected to have grown last year at its slowest pace since at least 2009."
The quandary here should be obvious: given the slowdown in mainland demand and the yuan deval, this isn't exactly the ideal time for Taiwan to be poking China in the eye with a stick."The election comes at a tricky time for Taiwan's export-dependent economy, which slipped into recession in the third quarter last year," Reuters said after the election. "China is Taiwan's top trading partner and Taiwan's favourite investment destination."
Indeed. Exports to China dropped a whopping 16.4% last month and were down nearly 20% Y/Y in November. Overall, exports fell 13.9% in December and were down 10.6% for the year. Exports to China fell 12.3% in 2015.
As for regional security and the ongoing cold war for two chains of islands in the Pacific, AP goes on to say that "Tsai [has] reaffirmed Taiwan's sovereignty claim over East China Sea islands also claimed by China but controlled by Japan [and] says Taiwan will work to lower tensions in the South China Sea, where it, China and four other governments share overlapping territorial claims."
In short then, Tsai has her hands full. She needs to satisfy her base by scaling back ties with China while keeping cross-Strait relations amicable enough to ensure that trade isn't imperiled at a time when exports are already in free fall. Meanwhile, Taiwan is also mired in the increasingly petulant spat over a series of sparsely populated islands in the region.
Good luck Ms. Tsai and remember, "Big Uncle" Xi is watching...
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The Asian Merkel.....
Voting by Diebold wins again, this time in Taiwan.
>>>> i'd hit that hoe in the video
>>>> i'd rather beat off with a cheese grater
She's 16, you perv!
Old enough to bleed, old enough to breed.
We began the march of the Matriarchy in 2012 for 2160 years.
Females will rule the planet.
If your eyes are open you see it all around you.
I remember flying through the Taipei airport in the late 90s. The whole thing was like one little room. There were endless green fields as far as the eye can see (the landing view).
Long way they've come.
Taiwan is a beautiful country...lots of mountains and green areas and very little pollution, almost no violent crime and great [and safe to eat] food!
I'd move there in a second if I could afford it. Apartments there have become very expensive similar to other world areas. However, it's not the Mainlanders fault there pushig up the prices, it's the shortage of houses and very low wages.
Very homogenous people... there's somethign to be said for that in this case.
BUT BUT BUT multiculturalism is so much cooler!
Who cares about harmony, low crime rate and unity in the nation? Seriously, would you rather live in some shit hole like Taiwan and never worry about getting shot, mugged, robbed and raped or would you rather live in beautiful Cleveland?
They (the ruling Oligarchs, after they lost the Civil War and fled from the Mainland) took over the Island from the Native Formosans.
Not homogenous.
Readily agree with you about Taiwan's beauty. I'd add to your list of positive aspects of the country by saying that the people are quite friendly.
Thanks for the perspective - resonates with what I've heard from a friend who grew up on a farm there. Definitely plan to visit there when doing a tour of the Orient. Assuming you are from the mainland?
@Fred: Close, amigo - two years less.
About the young pop-star - that's quite sad. Poor girl has no life in her face while making the 'apology.' Crushing...
Were you a teenager? I am thinking you are barely 30. Perhaps I am mistaken.
Somebody should have put Hilary on a slowboat, painter her ugly face, & shipped her out there to be queen.
Instead, in this country, we'll have one queen followed by another.
You don't know what the hell you are talking about. Paper ballots are used in Taiwan, mainland shill.
Xi Jinping: warm up the missiles
The Chinese military is itching for a scrimmage with the U.S. They falsly believe their military technology is now on par with the U.S.
They wouldn't want a confrontation with the US because all they have to do is wait. The US is collapsing all by itself under the weight of corporate and banker greed. Tick Tock.
There is no worry for Taiwan. The US has pledged assistance and defense of the island. Obama is in charge and next will by He La Wee.
Another weak leader from another rigged election. Taiwan is going down.
useless creature, nothing more than a life support system for a pussy
vote for a woman as president - bury your childrens future
germany knows the best
Agreed. It is very rare that a woman is a good leader for a nation.
Thatcher was good for the Pedophile Island but all the other modern examples are a disaster. ..
Although in Western Europe it's almost impossible to distinguish between made and female.
Great. Bears are attracted to women's 'monthlies' so now the long suffering people of Taiwan, and the longer suffering aboriginal peoples of Taiwan, have to worry about not only the ChiComs but about fucking bears.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tfboOt1bJcA
I'm expecting a bloodbath in markets Tue. Will she be known as a "fall girl"?
will the markets open tuesday? will the banks?
((oh, btw, my uncle is trailor trash, are you related?))
Don't know if they'll open Tue. They'll be closed Monday to observe Robert E. Lee's Birthday.
Hell, I don't know, we may be related, anybody that's experienced enough offshore crew changes is certainly aware of their "boattrash" status in life...
As per Shell Mngmt. if you get C.C. within 72 hrs of scheduled Crew Change, it is a successful C.C.
I wonder who backed her...I once thought voting meant something, but since Obama, Ukraine, Syria, Turkey...I have learned it means nothing. Its all a rigged game.
Since Obama ? You better adjust your time line.
there are two or three criminals
you can select between criminal A vs. criminal B, both criminals are from the same family and their children usually marry each other
"fair elections" exist during stable, political unimportant times
now conditions are no longer stable and cia selected members win anyway
therover.....Don't be too critical. People come to the realization of the game at different times and due to different world events. That he has gained the realization is by far the more important part of his post.
I don't know what is going on in Tiawan but maybe the folks there saw some news about Hong Kong and the mainland, like some people dissapearing that the Coms. didn't appreciate.
Peace Prize surprised you?
The Taiwanese flipped out when they saw what happened in hk last year and how the central gubmint handled it. There was no way this candidate was going to lose. However, I bet she continues all the economic ties with the Mainland since despite the polticial differences (i.e., a free society vs. a dictatorship) they still have lots of economic ties.
The entire Asian basin will be a hot bed the next 10 years for sure. If everyone keeps their tempers [and egos] in control, they can avoid an all-out war. There's much more to be gained by peaceful negotiation then by war for 90% of the people. Only bankers and the MIC benefit from war.
Having one party system or two party system like in US serving same corrupts is no different. China is not a dictatorship , your msm drivel is astounding.
Just one more reason for great land and asset grab we are going to call WWIII...
The winds of war are near gale force.
stupid taiwanese
now let in the muslime indesians and malaysians. and rhe filthy muslim bangladeshians
failed idiots
Isnt it Shabbat?
Typing on mom's computer is 'work,' you know.
whats wrong germanski your sister still under influence of muslime dicks? you idiots want muslims you idiots get muslims. i know european woman are now begging for being raped. who can blame them... they had no sex for so long because all of you fags are proud gays now
keep sucking ass boy
in comparison to you im for a muslime free world were woman are not allowed to vote until the age of 35 and restricted from politics
Believe me the world would be far better if women would have not allowed to vote, the West was great stable and homogeneous before that shit happened...
Now we see the self destruction of the West and we will see now the self destruction of Taiwan...
+1
( sorry i said it so it looks like woman are not allowed to vote in islam. i mean its better if there is no islam and no woman in politics)
This shows again ignorant of west media, there is no "Pro-China" party in Taiwan.
They have quickly become US, 8 years of demo, 8 years of republicans.
Although maybe Hillary can use this as booster.
the feminazis have failed in the usa. some of the most, supposedly, anti woman nations in the world have elected women to be their leader. my only explanation is american men know how btshtcrzy american women are and would never trust one to run the world.
Ha fuckin Chinese are supposed to be so smart when all they can do is one tyrannical despot regime after another for 2000 years that specializes in killing their own citizens. That makes them "low on the totem pole" barbarians on the same plane as inbred Arab Islamist murderers. Not so smart.
Anybody with half a brain would flip off mainland Chinese despot criminals so good for you Taiwan but damn the "progressive democrats"""????? WTF????? You could have picked a name not associated with political criminal mafia. geez.
Lets hope Taiwan can resist and push back the mainland Chinese despot criminal murderers.
Grimladus
She is a "watermelon".
Green (socialist green party, not tree hugging green party) on outside-Red on the inside.
She is a lezbo like Hillary.
I see China invading little china in a few years and the feminized little china losing to big China after heavy fighting in little china as the LGBT armies are routed and totally annihilated by big China.
The nationialistas of little china are in the way of big China.
Ummm.... you obviously know fuck-all about Taiwan.
I spend a couple of months there every year. First off, their new president is no ru-muncher, and isn't socialist at all. Secondly, obviously China's miltary is way bigger than TW's and always has been. But they have no way to get warm bodies across the strait alive.