The Taiwanese authorities closed the polls this Saturday at 4 p.m. (local time) for a local election in which estimates advanced by television networks point to a close race for the mayor of the capital, Taipei.
More than 19 million people, 760,000 of whom were voting for the first time, were called to participate in Taiwan’s local elections this Saturday, which also included a referendum on lowering the minimum voting age from 20 to 18.
In the absence of the electoral authorities to publish the first official results, the island’s television channels have already launched their forecasts, although it is true that they are based on the affinities for one or the other candidates.
However, despite the fact that the predictions are politically biased, the Taiwanese agency CNA has acknowledged that several of the electoral races will apparently be close, especially that of the capital.
SET TV, more sympathetic to the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP), suggests that former Health Minister Chen Shih-chung could take control of Taipei. However, TVBS, closer to the conservative Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT), opts for Chiang Wa-an.
In addition, Ko Wen Je, from the People’s Party, and Huang Shan Shan, an independent candidate, will also compete for the mayoralty of the capital, according to CNA.
Polls opened at 8:00 a.m. (local time) on an election day in which up to 11,000 seats are up for election in all the country’s city halls, with the exception of Chiayi City, where the election race has been postponed after the death of one of the candidates.
Despite the opening of more than 17,600 polling stations, some citizens have encountered obstacles to cast their vote at the ballot box, especially after the Central Epidemic Command Center (CECC) announced fines of up to 62,000 euros for those infected with COVID-19 who break the mandatory quarantine to vote in person.
According to the agency, Taiwan currently does not allow postal voting or similar, which means that people with coronavirus are strictly prohibited from voting. The CECC estimated that some 65,000 people were unable to participate in the election.
At stake in Saturday’s election are the mayoralties of Taiwan’s six largest cities – Taipei, New Taipei, Taoyuan, Taichung, Tainan and Kaohsiung – as well as mayors and magistrates in 15 other cities and counties across the country.
A referendum on lowering the legal age for voting and running for public office to 18 has also been held in conjunction with the municipal elections. If the referendum passes, an amendment to Taiwan’s Constitution will be required.
