Zur victory celebration, the Progress Party once again went to great lengths. Amid the deafening noise of pop music from numerous huge speakers along the street in front of the election center and constant cheers from presenters and local politicians, it became clear on the large screens early on Saturday evening: Lai Ching-te had won Taiwan's presidential election. With far fewer votes than his predecessor, but a little more clearly than expected.

Tens of thousands of Taiwanese cheered on the new president when Lai took the stage around half past nine in the evening. You have just seen on the numerous screens how Lai first and foremost assures the international press that he intends to carry on with everything in foreign policy like President Tsai Ing-wen. Lai and the other politicians on stage wear dark green flight jackets with “Team Taiwan” printed in English. As Lai ends his speech to great cheers, confetti cannons shoot green and red pieces of paper into the crowd, which includes a noticeable number of older Taiwanese.

A symbol of democracy

Taiwan's Progressive Party (DPP), which was founded in the 1980s by human rights activists and independence fighters, has now become part of the political establishment of the island republic, thanks to its third election victory in a row, which until four decades ago was ruled dictatorially by the national party KMT, i.e. the Kuomintang had been.

“Taiwan has told the world that between democracy and authoritarianism, we are on the side of democracy,” Lai said on stage. As the future president speaks, his words are accompanied by dramatic orchestral music. Taiwan will “continue to move forward side by side with the world’s democracies,” says Lai. This is aimed at Beijing, which sees Taiwan as a breakaway province and only calls Lai and its new vice president Hsiao Bi-khim “secessionists.” Hsiao, who remained at Lai's side on Saturday evening, has an American mother and was Taiwan's de facto ambassador to Washington until her candidacy.

And it was probably above all Hsiao, the moderate former parliament member, who kept the centrist-oriented Progressive Party voters in line that were necessary for the election victory. For some, Lai is said to still have his old image, who described himself in 2017 as a “pragmatic worker for Taiwan’s independence”. After his victory, Lai emphasized several times that these days are long gone. “As we strive for peace, we have no illusions,” says Lai. He will expand Taiwan's defense capability and expand partnerships with democracies around the world.

Lai points to Taiwan's constitution

He makes it clear that formal independence for Taiwan is not on the cards under him either, with reference to Taiwan's constitution, which does not contain this: “According to the constitutional order of the Republic of China, I will regulate the affairs of the two sides according to this system, so that Relations between the two sides can return to healthy and sustainable exchanges.”

Lai's call for stability also turns inward. The incumbent vice president received forty percent of the vote, i.e. not an absolute majority. Above all, he has now won because the opposition parties KMT and the People's Party, which was only founded in 2019, stole votes from each other. There was a mood for change in some parts of society. The Progress Party has lost its previous majority in parliament. The KMT now has the most seats there with 52 representatives, but no party anymore has an absolute majority.