Today, voters in Taiwan are heading to the polls for the presidential and parliamentary elections, which China has described as a choice between war and peace. This comes after Beijing repeatedly condemned the island's leading presidential candidate, who is poised to succeed the current President Tsai Ing-wen.
Three candidates are vying for Taiwan's presidency in a single-round election. They include William Lai, who presently serves as the Vice President of Taiwan and, like Tsai Ing-wen, belongs to the Democratic Progressive Party which advocates for independence; Han Kuo-yu, representing the Kuomintang party known for its closer ties with Beijing; and James Soong, the leader of the smaller People First Party.
The ruling Democratic Progressive Party, which champions Taiwan’s identity, hopes to secure a third term with Lai, their vice-presidential candidate and the frontrunner to succeed Ing-wen, who is constitutionally barred from running after two terms in office.
Speaking to reporters in the southern city of Tainan before voting, Lai urged Taiwanese to exercise their right to vote, stating briefly, "Every vote has its value. This is the democracy that Taiwan has earned through toil."
Prior to the elections, China has repeatedly denounced Taiwan’s leading presidential candidate as a dangerous separatist and has rejected his repeated calls for dialogue, following his commitment to "maintain peace across the Taiwan Strait" and continue bolstering the island's defenses.
Voters in Taiwan line up to cast their ballots in the elections (Getty Images)
The Kuomintang party's candidate urges for the resumption of contact with Beijing, starting with mutual visits. He accuses his rival Lai of supporting Taiwan's formal independence, while Lai claims that "Han" is pro-Beijing, which he in turn denies. Meanwhile, the third candidate (the leader of the People First Party) wants to re-engage with China but insists that it "must not come at the expense of protecting Taiwan’s democracy and way of life."
The parliamentary elections are no less significant than the presidential ones, especially if none of the three major parties achieves a majority, which could hinder the new president's ability to pass legislation and allocate spending, particularly on defense matters.
Balloons and Warnings
On another note, Taiwan's Defense Ministry reported this morning that it has once again detected Chinese balloons, with one hovering over Taiwan itself. They condemned the balloons, previously reported over the Strait last month, as psychological warfare and a threat to aviation safety.
On the eve of the elections, U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken called on Beijing authorities to maintain peace and stability with Taiwan, during his meeting with Liu Jianchao, head of the International Liaison Department of the Chinese Communist Party's central committee.
A U.S. State Department spokesperson also said Blinken reiterated the importance of maintaining peace and stability in the Taiwan Strait and the South China Sea, following the Chinese military's commitment to "crush" any pro-independence movements of the island, hours before Taiwan's pivotal elections.
