1Berita English – The presidential candidate from the ruling party in Taiwan, Lai Ching-te, emerged victorious in the presidential election on Saturday (13/1). He secured partial results with 40.2 percent of the votes.

Both of his opponents acknowledged their defeat in front of their supporters.

Results calculated from 98 percent of polling stations across the island, according to figures from the Central Election Commission, indicated that Lai’s main rival, Hou Yu-ih, trailed behind with 33.4 percent of the votes.

Hou Yu-ih, the presidential candidate from the opposition Kuomintang (KMT) party, apologized to his supporters for being unable to overturn the candidate from the ruling Democratic Progressive Party (DPP).

“Here, I congratulate Lai Ching-te and (his running mate) Hsiao Bi-khim for their victory,” he said to his supporters, as broadcasted on AFPTV.

China had previously warned that the election of Lai Ching-te would cause “war and regression” for the self-governing island.

Before the voting, Beijing had condemned Lai, the current vice president, as a dangerous “separatist.” Ahead of the polls, the defense ministry pledged to “destroy” any efforts toward Taiwan’s independence.

Lai Ching-te, a presidential candidate from the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP), ran in this election with Hsiao Bi-khim as his vice presidential candidate.

Lai, who studied at Harvard University, previously served in the parliament and held the position of mayor in the Tainan region. He is known for being more outspoken about Taiwan’s independence compared to Tsai.

On the other hand, Hou Yu-ih is a former police chief and mayor of New Taipei. He is the candidate from the main opposition Kuomintang party, which has friendly ties with Beijing.

Another presidential candidate, Ko Wen-je, founded the Taiwan People’s Party (TPP) in 2019 as an alternative to the two dominant political camps. He is a former surgeon who entered politics by successfully running for Mayor of Taipei in 2014.