The Liberty Times Editorial: Taiwanese again choose democracyDemocratic Progressive Party (DPP) presidential candidate William Lai (賴清德), who has been vice president during President Tsai Ing-wen’s (蔡英文) second term in office, and his running mate, former representative to the US Hsiao Bi-khim (蕭美琴), on Saturday emerged victorious with 5,586,019 votes, or 40.05 percent of the total. As for the DPP, would the incoming and somewhat weakened Lai administration surmount internal and external challenges to lead Taiwanese along the right path? The outcome of the presidential election shows that mainstream public opinion is focused on safeguarding the nation’s sovereignty and democracy and not leaning toward China. Electing a president who would firmly safeguard Taiwan’s sovereignty shows that unification with China is not an option for Taiwanese. On the other hand, they should take more pragmatic actions to overcome hardness through softness, thus showing the world that Taiwan is gentle, yet determined.

Source: Taipei Times January 16, 2024 17:05 UTC