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11th Legislative Yuan presidential election

The election for the President and Vice President of the 11th Legislative Yuan was held on February 1, 2024 (the 113th year of the Republic of China calendar). It marked the 11th election of the President and Vice President of the Legislative Yuan since the promulgation of the Constitution of the Republic of China. The election adopted a system of direct, equal, single-vote, and relative majority voting. According to the , the President and Vice President are elected by and from among the legislators, with all members of the Legislative Yuan automatically serving as candidates. The Kuomintang of China (KMT), the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP), and the Taiwan People's Party (TPP) each nominated their own candidates for the positions of President and Vice President.

In the election for the President of the Legislative Yuan, Kuomintang candidate Han Kuo-yu and Democratic Progressive Party candidate You Si-kun both failed to secure a majority of the votes in the first round, and therefore proceeded to a second round of voting. According to the results of the second round, Han Kuo-yu was elected President of the 11th Legislative Yuan with 54 votes.

In the election for the Vice President of the Legislative Yuan, Kuomintang candidate Johnny Chiang and Democratic Progressive Party candidate Tsai Chi-chang both failed to secure a majority of the votes in the first round, and therefore proceeded to a second round of voting. According to the results of the second round, Johnny Chiang was elected Vice President of the 11th Legislative Yuan with 54 votes.

Background

Following the conclusion of the 2024 presidential and legislative elections in the Republic of China, Lai Ching-te assumed the presidency. For the first time since 2000, no single party holds a majority in the Legislative Yuan. The Democratic Progressive Party secured 51 seats and became the ruling party; the Kuomintang won 52 seats and became the largest opposition party; the Taiwan People's Party obtained 8 seats; and two independent legislators were elected, both of whom joined the Kuomintang caucus.

With neither the Kuomintang nor the Democratic Progressive Party holding a majority of seats, the Taiwan People's Party became the key swing force in determining the outcome of the Legislative Yuan presidential election. On January 26, 2024, TPP Chairman Ko Wen-je invited both major parties to attend a closed-door meeting with the TPP caucus. TPP legislator Huang Kuo-chang requested that the candidates for President and Vice President of the Legislative Yuan from both parties state their positions on four proposed parliamentary reforms and the single-convener system, among other issues.On January 29, 2024, KMT candidates for President and Vice President of the Legislative Yuan, Han Kuo-yu and Johnny Chiang, as well as DPP candidates You Si-kun and Tsai Chi-chang, separately visited the TPP caucus to seek its support. On January 31, 2024, the TPP decided to nominate Huang Shan-shan as its candidate for President of the Legislative Yuan. Ultimately, the party tickets for the President and Vice President of the Legislative Yuan were the DPP's You–Tsai ticket (You Si-kun and Tsai Chi-chang), the KMT's Han–Chiang ticket (Han Kuo-yu and Johnny Chiang) and the TPP's Huang–Chang ticket (Huang Shan-shan and Chang Chi-kai).

Nomination

President

Vice President

Poll

Prior to the election for President of the Legislative Yuan, Faith and Trust News Network conducted a public opinion survey. You Si-kun received 31.8% support, Han Kuo-yu received 28.6%, and Huang Shan-shan received 20%. The remaining percentage consisted of respondents who were undecided, had no opinion, or chose other options. The poll showed that You Si-kun ranked first in public support, holding a slight lead over the other candidates.

Voting process

In the first round of voting, all 51 members of the Democratic Progressive Party caucus voted for the DPP's candidate, all 54 members of the Kuomintang caucus (including two independents) voted for the KMT's candidate, and all eight members of the Taiwan People's Party caucus voted for the TPP's candidate. However, Legislator accidentally damaged her ballot. After review by the acting presiding chair of the Legislative Yuan, Ker Chien-ming, the ballot was ruled invalid, resulting in the TPP candidate Huang Shan-shan receiving only seven votes in the presidential election. Chen Gau-Tzu later apologized for the incident and resigned as caucus secretary-general. Fellow TPP legislator Huang Kuo-chang and party chairman Ko Wen-je both stated that party members who defect in voting should be expelled. Following the incident, Huang Shan-shan described it as a minor mistake and said that no party disciplinary action would be taken, while Ko Wen-je stated that although it did not constitute vote defection, disciplinary measures were still advisable. On February 6, 2024, the TPP Central Evaluation Committee decided that Chen Gau-Tzu had committed a "non-intentional violation of party discipline" and imposed a two-month suspension of her powers as a central committee member.

As neither of the top two candidates in the first round of voting for President and Vice President of the Legislative Yuan—respectively from the Kuomintang and the Democratic Progressive Party —secured a majority, a second round of voting was conducted in accordance with the Regulations Governing the Mutual Election of the President and Vice President of the Legislative Yuan. Because the Taiwan People's Party candidates had been eliminated in the first round, all eight members of the TPP caucus were absent from the second round of voting. In the second round, both the DPP and KMT caucuses unanimously maintained their first-round voting choices. As a result, KMT candidate Han Kuo-yu was elected President of the 11th Legislative Yuan with 54 votes, and KMT candidate Johnny Chiang was elected Vice President of the 11th Legislative Yuan with 54 votes.

Result

President

Vice President

Protest

On February 1, the day of the election, pro–Taiwan independence groups—including the Green Party Taiwan, the Dr. Chen Wen-chen Memorial Foundation, and the World United Formosans for Independence—launched the "Reject China's Choice" campaign and held a protest near the Legislative Yuan. They accused Han Kuo-yu of acting as an agent of the Chinese Communist Party and called on legislators not to vote for him.

References