William Lai, accompanied by his running mate Hsiao Bi-khim, Taiwan’s former representative to the United States, garnered over 5.5 million votes. Taiwan’s electoral system operates on a first-past-the-post voting basis, declaring victory for the presidential-VP pair with the highest percentage of votes.

Turnout on the self-ruled island exceeded 70 percent, with approximately 19.5 million eligible Taiwanese voters.

William Lai, widely expected to succeed incumbent President Tsai Ing-wen, whose second consecutive term concludes in May, secured a win consistent with earlier predictions.

Lai competed against the Kuomintang's candidate Hou Yu-ih, who closely trailed with 33.5 percent of the vote, and the Taiwan People’s Party’s Ko Wen-Je, lagging behind both candidates with only 26.5 percent.

Addressing the press as the final results unfolded, Lai declared the election a triumph for Taiwan’s democracy, stating, “We are telling the international community that between democracy and authoritarianism, we will stand on the side of democracy.”

Framed by China as a choice between “peace and war” and asserting the DPP’s governance as “incompatible” with cross-strait peace, Lai's victory assumes significance amid escalating tensions between Taipei and Beijing.

Considering the island as part of its territory, Beijing responded to the election results by asserting that "reunification" with Taiwan remains "inevitable." Chen Binhua, spokesperson for Beijing's Taiwan Affairs Office, stated in a release carried by state news agency Xinhua, "The vote will not impede the inevitable trend of China's reunification."

President Joe Biden reiterated that the US "does not support" Taiwan's independence, following Taiwanese voters' rejection of China and the granting of a third presidential term to the ruling party.

BOB Post