Taiwan votes on decrease voting age, mayors, metropolis councils

HUIZHONG WU TAIPEI: Voters headed to the polls throughout Taiwan in a carefully watched native election on Saturday that may decide the energy of the island’s main political events forward of the 2024 presidential election. Taiwanese residents shall be selecting their mayors, metropolis council members and different native leaders in all 13 counties and in 9 cities. There’s additionally a referendum to decrease the voting age from 20 to 18. Polls opened at 8 am (0000GMT) on Saturday. Whereas worldwide observers and the ruling occasion have tried to hyperlink the elections to the long-term existential risk that’s Taiwan’s neighbour, many native consultants don’t assume China has a big function to play this time round. “The worldwide society have raised the stakes too excessive. They’ve raised a neighborhood election to this worldwide stage, and Taiwan’s survival,” mentioned Yeh-lih Wang, a political science professor at Nationwide Taiwan College. At an elementary college in New Taipei Metropolis, town that surrounds the capital Taipei, voters younger and previous got here early regardless of the rain to forged their ballots. Yu Mei-zhu, 60, mentioned she got here to forged her poll for the incumbent Mayor Hou You-yi, operating for reelection. “I feel he has achieved properly, so I need to proceed to assist him. I imagine in him, and that he can enhance our surroundings in New Taipei Metropolis and our transportation infrastructure.” President Tsai Ing-wen additionally got here out early Saturday morning to forged her vote, catching many citizens abruptly as her safety and entourage swept via the varsity. She then urged folks throughout Taiwan to forged their votes. Tsai, who additionally chairs the ruling Democratic Progressive Get together, has spoken out many occasions about “opposing China and defending Taiwan” in the middle of campaigning. However the DPP’s candidate Chen Shih-chung, who was operating for mayor in Taipei, solely raised the difficulty of the Communist Get together’s risk a couple of occasions earlier than he rapidly switched again to native points as there was little curiosity, consultants mentioned. Throughout campaigning, there have been few mentions of the large-scale army workout routines focusing on Taiwan that China held in August in response to US Home Speaker Nancy Pelosi’s go to. “So I feel if you cannot even elevate this subject in Taipei,” Wang mentioned. “You do not even want to think about it in cities within the south.” As a substitute, campaigns resolutely targeted on the native: air air pollution within the central metropolis of Taichung, visitors snarls in Taipei’s tech hub Nangang, and the island’s COVID-19 vaccine buying methods, which had left the island in brief provide throughout an outbreak final yr. Candidates spent the final week earlier than the elections in a packed public schedule. On Sunday, the DPP’s Chen marched via Taipei with a big parade crammed with dancers in dinosaur fits and performers from totally different international locations. Chiang Wan-an, the Nationalist occasion’s mayoral candidate, canvassed at a {hardware} market, whereas Vivian Huang, an unbiased candidate, visited lunch stalls at a market. All three made stops at Taipei’s well-known night time markets. The query is how the island’s two main political events – the Nationalist and the incumbent DPP – will fare. As a result of each Tsai and the Nationalist’s chair Eric Chu handpicked candidates, the efficiency will affect their very own standings inside their occasion, in addition to the occasion’s energy within the coming two years. “If the DPP loses many county seats, then their capacity to rule will face a really sturdy problem,” mentioned You Ying-lung, chair on the Taiwanese Public Opinion Basis that recurrently conducts public surveys on political points. The election outcomes will in some methods additionally replicate the general public’s perspective in direction of the ruling occasion’s efficiency within the final two years, You mentioned. Observers are additionally watching to see if outgoing Taipei mayor Ko Wen-je’s Taiwan Folks’s Get together’s candidates will decide up a mayoral seat. A 2024 presidential bid for Ko shall be impacted by his occasion’s political efficiency Saturday, analysts say. Ko has been campaigning together with his deputy, the unbiased mayoral candidate Huang, for the previous a number of weeks. Meals stall proprietor Hsian Fuh Mei mentioned he was supporting Huang. “We need to see somebody worldwide,” he mentioned. “In case you have a look at Singapore, earlier than we had been higher than Singapore, however we have fallen behind. I hope we will change route.” Others had been extra apathetic to the native race. “It feels as if everybody is sort of the identical, from the coverage standpoint,” mentioned 26-year-old Sean Tai, an worker at a ironmongery shop. Tai declined to say who he was voting for, however desires somebody who will elevate Taipei’s profile and produce higher financial prospects whereas maintaining the established order with China. “We do not need to be fully sealed off. I actually hope that Taiwan might be seen internationally,” he mentioned.