and the winner is…
Taiwan's opposition Nationalist Party scored a landslide victory in legislative elections Saturday, dealing a stinging blow to the government's hard-line China policies just two months before a crucial presidential poll.…The Nationalists favor more active engagement with China and do not rule out eventual unification. The DPP wants to make official the independence Taiwan has had since a civil war nearly 60 years ago, but has held back due to fears that Beijing would make good on its repeated threats to attack.
…Speaking at Nationalist headquarters in Taipei, Ma said the party had won 81 seats — enough to give it a 3/4 majority together with four pro-Nationalist independents…
…China! A two thirds majority is enough to give the KMT the power to alter the Tawianese constitution in a Beijing friendly direction, though we won't see that unless the KMT also win the presidential elections in March. They are currently 20 points ahead in polling. Meanwhile, can you hear the giant sucking sound?
Ma took a high-profile role in the legislative campaign, pressing home his message that Chen's reluctance to engage China inflamed tensions with Beijing and hurt the island's economy, one of the 20 largest in the world. Taiwan is also a major research and manufacturing base for the computer industry.
More analysis from Roland Soong and Sam Crane.
I predicted a KMT victory here on the basis that the vote buying market had tightened in DPP strongholds.
Comments