January 13, 2024
It's a three-way race for the presidency
between current Vice President Lai Ching-te from the Democratic Progressive Party
New Taipei city Mayor Hou Yu-ih from the Kuomintang
and former Taipei mayor Ko Wen-je from the Taiwan People's Party
China, which claims Taiwan as its own territory, frames it a choice between war and peace
The U.S. says it wants to see free and fair elections in Taiwan and interference is unacceptable
Around 19.5 million Taiwanese are eligible to vote, out of a population of over 23 million
"I'm more nervous in this election because it is a choice between whether we want to be closer to China or to the U.S.. It is related to the global situation. Personally I hope we stay on the path that is closer to the U.S. but everyone has their own choice, another half of the population thinks it's better to stay close to China. At the end, it's a democratic decision of the people."
"I'm very calm because Taiwan has been a democratic place for many years, it is a diverse society that respects different voices. Everyone can make their own choices. I hope Taiwan can move towards internationalization and grow robustly locally."