One of the most important elections of the year is officially underway — and it’s much closer to home than the United States.
Millions of voters in Taiwan will go to the polls today, and no country will be watching more closely than China.
In recent months she has revived her flailing reputation by taking a hard line approach against political interference from the Chinese government.The main opposition party is the Kuomintang, led by pro-China figure Han Kuo-yu, which supports eventual unification with the mainland.Voters will also elect a 113-member legislature, where Ms Tsai’s Democratic Progressive Party currently has 68 seats. The Nationalists hold 35 seats with the rest taken by minor parties and independents.
It has also threatened numerous airlines that listed Taiwan as a separate country on their websites, including Australia’s Qantas. To take hold of Taiwan before his next run for Party congress in 2022 would be a huge boost. For the West and their allies, it would be a major gamechanger. The Taiwanese president had been leading by a comfortable margin in most polls before the standard blackout period on surveys was imposed 10 days before today’s elections.
An August poll last year found that only 19 per cent of Taiwanese people opposed the protests, with 75 per cent of 20-somethings in favour of the demonstrations. However, in an apparent effort to avoid antagonising voters, Mr Xi didn’t renew the threat of using force against Taiwan during his annual New Year’s Eve address, though reiterated China’s firm opposition to Taiwan’s formal independence. Chinese state media have been notably silent on the election campaign.
Australia Latest News, Australia Headlines
Similar News:You can also read news stories similar to this one that we have collected from other news sources.
Why Iran's role in the Ukranian plane crash could be very bad news for Donald TrumpThe US President was going to count this week as a win, but it may come back to haunt him.
Read more »
Charlotte Crosby explains why she had breast implantsI’m a Celeb’s international reality star Charlotte Crosby has opened up about her reasons for getting breast implants after admitting she’s had lip fillers and a nose job.
Read more »
Here's why people say they are protesting during Australia's bushfire emergencyThousands of people have gathered at Sydney's Town Hall, and in capital cities around Australia, to demand more action on climate change as Australia faces an ongoing bushfire crisis. Here's what some of them had to say.
Read more »
Taiwan's Iron Cat Lady Tsai Ing-wen and her 'cute' campaign to keep the presidencyTaiwan goes to the polls today and looks set to re-elect Tsai Ing-wen. Her pet cat is front and centre of her campaign, but underneath the 'cute' style lies a much harder edge.
Read more »
Tokyo 2020 takes out-of-the-box approach with cardboard bedsAthletes competing at the Tokyo 2020 Olympic and Paralympic Games will sleep on bed frames made from recyclable cardboard, with mattresses formed of polyethylene materials.
Read more »