Almost 80 percent of Taiwan, an island of 23 million off the coast of China, is expected to head to the polls Nov. 29 to vote in local elections with more than 11,000 seats up for grabs. Voters will choose candidates ranging from mayors in Taiwan's six biggest cities to low-level village chiefs and township councilors, who make up the bulk of the vacancies.
But the elections are more than just an exercise in local politics. Beijing, which views the island as a renegade province that must someday be reunited with the Chinese motherland, has actively cultivated relationships with local Taiwanese officials in the lead up to the elections and will likely watch the outcome closely. With the Cross-Strait Service Trade Agreement (CSSTA), a trade pact that would open Taiwan to further mainland investment, stalled in the island's parliament since March, elected officials on the village, county, and city levels could provide China an alternate avenue for making economic inroads into the island.
For Taiwanese voters, the November election most immediately is about domestic issues. Highly watched races include those for mayor in Taiwan's six cities: Taipei, New Taipei, Taoyuan, Taichung, Tainan, and Kaohsiung. For Taipei's hotly contested mayoral race, six major Taiwanese media outlets, including those that favor the ruling Nationalist Party (KMT) and the opposition pro-independence Democratic Progressive Party (DPP), have all put Ko Wen-je, a doctor and an independent supported by the DPP, on top of his competitor Sean Lien, son of former Taiwan Vice President Lien Chan.
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