「Forum on the 2018 Nine-in-one Local Election and Its Impact on Cross-strait Rations」

 The opposition party, KMT, won majority of the seats of county magistrates and city mayors in the Taiwan’s nine-in one local election on November 24, 2018, bringing an uncertainty to the future relations between the two sides of Taiwan Strait. Facing the new political spectrum, the Institute for National Policy Research, cosponsored with the Taiwan Democracy Foundation, held a forum with a title of “the aftermath of 2018 Nine-in-one local Election and Its Impact on Cross-strait Relations” on November 26, intending to provide references and advices for decision making of cross-strait policies.

In the opening remarks, the INPR President Hung-mao Tien stated that, despite some minor defects in ballot administration, the 2018 nine-in-one local election was another demonstration of the deepening of Taiwan democracy. As many countries in the third wave of democracy returned to authoritarian ruling in the last 10 years, Taiwan is exceptionally unwavering on the path of democracy mainly due to the maturity of its voters. The Forum is aimed to discuss the elements of the election and its implications the development of the cross strait relations.

The Forum composed of two sessions: Taiwan domestic politics after the 2018 local election and its implications to the relations between Taiwan and China. Several presentations were made by professor Xue-wen Soong of National Chung Cheng University, Professor Qi-ming Zhuang of National Taipei University of Education, Professor Wu-yue Zhang of Tamkang University and Professor Zhi-sheng Wang of Cross-Strait Policy Association. Fervent discussion on all the related issues followed with the presentations.

Professor Soong urged the government to revise relevant laws and regulations to respond to the drastic change of cross strait relations after the election. Professor Zhang argued that the cross-strait relations are experiencing rapid changes with the internal political and economic factors in both Taiwan and China. Both sides should avoid misjudgment and seize the narrow window of opportunity to accommodate each other before Taiwan presidential election in 2020. With the development of US-China trade war, the 40th anniversary of Message to Compatriots in Taiwan in2018 and the upcoming 2020 Taiwan president election, the cross-strait relations will plummet into bottom once leadership of the two sides fail to maintain the status quo in the next two years.

Affected by the constant changes of international situations as well of political and economic factors of both Taiwan and China, the cross-strait relations develop in a state of uncertainty. As a non-partisan think tank, the Institute for National Policy Research will continue to spare no efforts to play as a platform to forge public opinion consensuses for the references for both people and government.