Taiwan elects first woman president

Tsai disappeared from China’s most popular social network following her victory, with censors working swiftly to block searches for “Tsai Ing-wen” and “Taiwan elections” on the Twitter-like Weibo network.

Taiwan for all practical purposes been independent since the end of the Chinese civil war in 1949, when the defeated Nationalist government fled to the island as the Communists, under Mao Zedong, swept to power. She was the first woman named as Taiwan’s main China affairs minister in 2000.

The two sides have been governed separately since, though a shared cultural and linguistic heritage mostly endures – with Mandarin spoken as the official language in both places.

She will have to balance the superpower interests of China, also Taiwan’s largest trading partner, and the United States with those of her freewheeling, democratic home. He bowed deeply in a sign of apology and declared his resignation as chairman of the party.

Outgoing KMT President Ma Ying-jeou fostered closer economic ties with the mainland, with a landmark economic framework agreement boosting trade ties.

However, the DPP is traditionally a pro-independence party and opponents say Tsai will destabilise relations.

China has held out the “one country, two systems” formula, under which the British colony of Hong Kong returned to China in 1997, as a solution for Taiwan. “‘Bitter Fruit” While China has been relatively measured in its response, repeating its standard line about opposing independence, great uncertainty lies ahead.

The 2016 election was contested on issues surrounding Taiwan’s relationship with mainland China, government transparency, social justice, and the economy. “Nothing is more important than Taiwan to Beijing”.

The election came just months after a historic meeting between the leaders of Taiwan and China. China has not renounced the use of force to ensure eventual unification with the island.

Addressing a crowd of a few hundred supporters at his campaign headquarters, the Nationalists’ Chu said: “We failed”. Taiwan is a key fault line in the Beijing-Washington relationship. “We will not be divided because of the election, but will be united because of democracy”.

Analysts also agree there will not be any immediate backlash from China, as alienating Taiwan would play against Beijing’s ultimate aim of reunification.

“I’m very happy with the results”, said Soda Su, 40, a web designer. “Things have become much darker”.

Despite its 2012 defeat in presidential and legislative elections, the DPP has made significant gains under Tsai’s leadership, with an impressive showing in the 2014 nationwide local elections. “Our lives have been gloomy for the past eight years”. Lee won by a landslide. But then, the DPP did not have a majority in parliament, which constrained its agenda.

Tsai, who lost a run for mayor in 2010 and the presidency in 2012, won with about 56 percent of the votes and led the DPP to their biggest ever victory in parliamentary polls.

Deprived of formal diplomatic relations with the world’s major nations, Taiwan relies on its stable of 22 allies, mostly small, poor states in the Pacific, Africa and Central America and the Caribbean.