China’s interference in Taiwan’s elections: Responses from Taiwan and the US

Asia Dialogue
Date: December 10, 2019
By: Yu-Hua Chen.

In January 2020 Taiwan will elect its president for the next four years. Incumbent president Tsai

Ing-wen warned in an interview that “China’s attempt to meddle in this upcoming presidential election…is very obvious. We can see the shadow of Chinese meddling in every important election of Taiwan.” Although China denied the allegation, respectable research and reports provide evidence of how Beijing sways Taiwan’s elections and political processes. Since Taiwan’s 2018 ‘nine-in-one’ local elections, there has been much productive analysis of Chinese interference (to which I contributed my own assessment). One aspect, however, has not been thoroughly covered: how can Taiwan and the US cooperate to safeguard the coming presidential election against China’s intervention? Many Taiwanese have not fully recognised that this election is at the centre of a clash between two forces – China vows to reset the existing liberal international order, while the US endeavours to strengthen it.

China’s most visible and longest-held measure for influencing Taiwan’s elections is military intimidation. Since Tsai assumed office, China has ramped up military coercion considerably by conducting military exercises in Taiwan’s vicinity, and periodically dispatching its navy and air force to circumnavigate the island. These military manoeuvres attempt to undermine faith in the Tsai government and sends an aggressive political message that the Taiwan Strait is China’s territorial water.    [FULL  STORY]