The third direct presidential election came to a close yesterday, with President Chen Shui-bian (
Due to the entanglement of domestic and international factors, the 2004 presidential election was extremely complex, and the election results were even more unpredictable than before. In addition, both the president and the vice president were shot on the eve of the election day, adding to the shock and thrill of the process. Furthermore, just as it did during the last two direct presidential elections, China once again tried every possible means to threaten Taiwan, which rapidly increased the tension across the Taiwan Strait and attracted much attention from the international community. Although Taiwan was in an unfavorable position and faced various threats, the Taiwanese people successfully resolved the difficulties with their rationality and wisdom, and added yet another glorious page of democratic victory to Taiwan's democratic development.
ILLUSTRATION: MOUNTAIN PEOPLE
In this year's presidential election, Chen and Lu, who sought a second term with the slogan "a deepening of reform," were challenged by the Lien-Soong ticket, making "a second transition of power" its major platform. In the previous presidential election in 2000, the five candidates were divided on three different issues, with the Chen-Lu ticket winning the election with a small margin. With Lien and Soong teaming up to challenge Chen and Lu this time around, it was not difficult to foresee the fierceness of the election campaign. In fact, the two camps were equally strong from the beginning of the election campaign, and neither camp was sure about whether it could win the battle. Yesterday, the Chen-Lu ticket defeated the Lien-Soong ticket by a narrow margin of 29,518 votes, proving that this election indeed was a fierce democratic battle.
Compared to the last presidential election, the Chen-Lu vote increased from 39.30 percent to 50.11 percent. This achievement is evidence that Chen's policies -- in particular, insisting on Taiwanese sovereignty and democratic reform -- have won the approval of more voters. The Lien-Soong vote was lower than their total in the last presidential election, and it seems this fact cannot be unrelated to the opinions advocated during their campaign. The two camps and the people of Taiwan should all reflect on the political significance of the small difference between the Chen-Lu and Lien-Soong tickets, and what effects this will have on the future development of democracy in Taiwan.
But then again, Chen's victory by less than 30,000 votes does constitute an effective majority. However, turning the issue around, 49.89 percent of voters do not support Chen. In other words, although Chen has left the minority position of the past four years behind him to become a president supported by a majority of voters, he is still not a president for the absolute majority. The purpose of this analysis is to alert Chen to the fact that he has to be conscientious in his policy implementation over the next four years.
In addition to realizing the hopes of his supporters, he also has to take into consideration the opinions of the other, also substantial, part of the population. He has to treat these non-supporters with even more tolerance and respect.
As a result of many different reasons, Taiwan's presidential election, which should be a matter for Taiwan itself, has attracted international attention. In particular, the assassination attempt on Chen and Lu on the eve of the election, shocked the international community. Fortunately, the people of Taiwan and Taiwanese democracy are already quite mature, and despite the shadow cast by the violence of an unknown gunman, the grand democratic occasion was still completed in an orderly manner, causing the world to look at Taiwan through new eyes. The outcome of the election was a small difference between the two camps. Both camps should now display lofty democratic behavior and accept the outcome of the election, both in heart and in deed, and they should demand that their supporters show self-restraint. This is the only way that the presidential election can be considered to have been brought to a successful close.
Although Lien and Soong upon being informed about the minuscule margin loudly appealed to their supporters to stay rational and maintain their calm, they nevertheless branded the election unfair and plan to file a lawsuit to seek to have the election invalidated.
But since they called for supporters to stay rational and calm, they should turn to the Public Officials Election and Recall Law (
An election is the beginning of responsibility. Chen now has four years of government experience, and after this bitter battle, he must realize the importance of speeding up reform, invigorating the economy and working for the welfare of the people. Since the people of Taiwan have given President Chen another chance, he should face public opinion with more modesty and reciprocate with even better performance.
Although this is only the third direct presidential election in Taiwanese history, the polling results in many areas show a growing self-awareness among voters. This is a harbinger of a more mature democracy. With a swiftly maturing electorate, politicians should also be dependable and accountable so that they can meet the expectations of voters in this new era and not be eliminated by the massive current of democratic advancement.
We hope that Taiwan in the future will have a mature ruling party and a mature opposition, with all pushing for national progress based on the spirit of serving the people. Since the 228 Hand-in-Hand Rally, the whole world has been looking at Taiwan.
The whole world is also watching via live broadcast to see whether this election will come to a peaceful end. The Taiwanese people have won international recognition, and now the focus is on the political wisdom of those elected and defeated.
Translated by Jackie Lin, Eddy Chang, and Perry Svensson
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