Tsai Ing-wen, First female President of Taiwan
Taiwan voters made history Saturday, electing pro-independence party candidate Tsai Ing-wen as the first female president of the country in a landslide victory.
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In a speech following her win, Tsai, 59, of the opposition Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) said the election results showed “people want a government that is more transparent and accountable”
“I will rebuild the people’s trust in government and create a stable foundation for Taiwan’s future development,” she said at a news conference following the concession of her opponent, Eric Chu of the ruling Nationalist Party, or Kuomintang (KMT).
Several hours after polling closed, official election results showed Tsai leading with more than 56% of the popular vote to 31% for Chu. Results also showed her DPP party was poised to take control of Taiwan’s parliament, the Executive Yuan, for the first time in the country’s history.
Tsai's victory was widely expected. Voters have grown weary of a sluggish economy, which grew only 1% last year, and wages that have long been stagnant under the leadership of the KMT and outgoing President Ma Ying-jeou.
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The result could also been seen as a referendum on Taiwan's relationship with its cross-strait neighbor China, which was strengthened significantly under Ma. The economic benefits of deeper integration with China never materialized for most ordinary citizens, and many voters, especially younger ones, have grown resistant to China exerting too much control over Taiwan. China still considers the island part of its territory and has never ruled out taking it back by force.
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