China’s Combative Nationalists Urge War to Reintegrate Taiwan After Presidential Election

By Kelly Tang
January 17th, 2024

The record third win for Taiwan’s most independence-leaning party in Saturday’s presidential election has sparked calls for war from Chinese nationalists who are losing patience, despite more than 70 years of status quo, and want to see the island forcefully reunified with the mainland.

The ruling Democratic Progressive Party’s candidate Lai Ching-te, who was Taiwan’s vice president, was elected the self-governing island’s new president by just over 40% of the vote, which he said in his victory speech told the international community that “between democracy and authoritarianism, we will stand on the side of democracy.”

The more China-friendly Kuomintang (KMT) candidate Hou Yu-ih won just over a third of the vote and the Taiwan People’s Party candidate Ko Wen-je received over a quarter of ballots cast.

Chinese officials had characterized the election as a choice for Taiwan between peace and war.

But it is mainland Chinese nationalists who seem to listening to that message.

In interviews with VOA, mainland Chinese reacted to the election result with calls for China to make good on its threat to force Taiwan’s reunification.

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